


To Tundra

by aerioi, cexies



Category: Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, Homestuck
Genre: Multi, tags and relationships will be updated as the story progresses!, the difference between / and & is important
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-01-29
Updated: 2014-12-17
Packaged: 2018-01-10 12:00:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 21
Words: 144,218
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1159505
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aerioi/pseuds/aerioi, https://archiveofourown.org/users/cexies/pseuds/cexies
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>An AU in which a Redguard and Dunmer make an unlikely alliance, travelling around Skyrim for justice and dragons.</p><div class="center">
  <p>[edited from an ongoing roleplay; follow on <a href="http://to-tundra.tumblr.com/">tumblr</a> for updates]</p>
</div>
            </blockquote>





	1. n

 

 

  


art by [friendlysatanist](http://www.furaffinity.net/user/friendlysatanist/)  


We take on the burden of all these sad-eyed children, with lilies bunched in our hands— _To Tundra, Los Campesinos!_

[everything you'll read is straight from a roleplay that has been in progress since 2012. obviously it's been edited quite a bit so that interactions flow and we hope the delayed responses that naturally come with roleplaying aren't as obvious as they were in their raw format. we apologize for how often the pov shifts, but it is unavoidable with the length the rp has reached--it would be impossible to write whole chapters from one perspective. we mostly follow the quests and timeline set in the canon game, but often vere off. artistic liberty and headcanons have been applied in cases where we felt it was necessary. ]

r 


	2. riften i

The day Terezi Pyrope had entered Riften should have been the day the city fell to its knees in fear.

She’d entered with purpose and reason, avoiding the rather shady ‘visitors tax’ by pure intimidation alone. The Bee and Barb had housed her, with a less than favorable amount of gold going towards shelter from the city’s streets. Riften was not a rich city and the beggars outside did not look trustworthy, most certainly the kind who would pawn off your possession without regard for who they’d come from. While it would have been easier to try and pose as a beggar to gain quicker access to her target, there wasn’t a way she could possibly pull that off. For a start, she would have had to shed her belongings; she didn’t trust the inn to adequately look after any possessions, let alone her own. She was then left with numerous options, such as trying to join the guild itself, but the thought repulsed her. There had to be a way to accurately gather knowledge without partaking in degrading activities and that principle had lead Terezi to one of the numerous bridges in the city: overlooking the key area of the market place.

The bridge itself didn’t seem to be the most secure area, and Terezi had doubts about the sturdiness of the beam she was sitting on; it would be a crying shame if she was to fall over the edge. There was no way for her to test the depths of the water below, and perhaps she’d have to investigate that after night passed. If there was a need for a quick escape, then the dramatic exit of water could always be assured to obscure her direction of travel. Water was not the greatest ally to an almost blind individual, and the thought of actually falling in was enough to shift her further onto the bridge. While her feet still didn’t quite touch the floor, there was more certainty that she’d fall forwards if she was taken for surprise.

The surprise tonight, however, would not come to her, that she was sure of. Tonight was dedicated to her new band of antagonists. She’d scrutinized the city for several days, allowing herself to get a feel for the place. With blurred vision, it was imperative that she worked out the mappings of a city before attempting any kind of job that could jeopardize her welfare. There seemed to be plenty of shadows to hide in, but she knew better than to trust any place that didn’t look obvious. Thieves would know the city better than they knew themselves, and there would be nowhere for her to back off to. Luckily, it seemed the hot spots for larceny came about nearest to the buildings that opened well into the night: if Terezi somehow managed to create trouble for herself, then the inn was close enough for her to feel secure.

The eve was to be spent simply observing the area. There was no rush to infiltrate anything: all good things took time, and time was a measurement she had in abundance. While it was more appealing to simply start picking off the villains one by one, gaining a feel for their numbers and power was the intelligent approach to pick. At a glance, it wasn’t clear how she could distinguish guild members from regular citizens and she still faced the problem of thieves who did not belong to any alliance. While Terezi had no problems with accidentally killing unaffiliated thieves, she was not a murderer of the innocent; those not involved should remain that way, and it was part of her duty to accurately label those who were innocent and guilty.

Swallowing a sigh, she shifted against the railing again. It looked to be a long evening, and her attention had a habit of wandering when she was not focused on a direct object or person. There was no way of knowing that any crime would even take place tonight, and there was no way of knowing whether that would be because of her presence--or if it was even recognized as something important. Riften wasn’t a city that lay in the middle of Skyrim, she could only assume that people travelled to the city with a purpose, which would make her presence an oddity. Of course, her purpose was to flush out the infamous Thieves Guild, but that wasn’t what you announced to the general public. Or what she assumed to be the general public. Even she found it odd to accuse shop vendors of being thieves, as their revenue wouldn’t need to come from petty crime. Their stock however, was another story she would have to investigate. With a quiet hum she continued watching the outlines of their figures, trying to guess their races and what their stalls sold. She’d slowly learn the city, and then she’d quickly take down her enemies: merciless and thorough, just as she’d been raised.

On the other hand, it was about time the Thieves Guild started recognizing Karkat Vantas’ potential—and tonight was going to be the night he would prove himself. 

He had been living with the Thieves Guild long enough that he shouldn’t have had to put up with trivial busywork jobs anymore. As if going to collect the odd debt wasn’t the pinnacle of grunt work, most of his jobs consisted of fishing or petty theft. The kids in Riften grew up knowing how to pickpocket like they knew their own names, and getting shafted with all the pickpocketing jobs meant that the higher-ups didn’t see Karkat as a useful member of the Guild, and that was getting old. Not that he was one for going above and beyond, or being the best he could be, or any of that bullshit. It was simply a matter of respect; if this was where he was going to make his home for the time, than he wanted to be treated fairly. He knew he wasn’t the best at what they did, but he wasn’t the worst either, only it seemed like the rest of the guild seemed to think so. Just because he wasn’t there to make friends didn’t mean he didn’t care what the others thought about him. But tonight would be different.

Tonight he wouldn’t be picking some jewelry off a well-off tourist, or collecting the debt some morons here were incapable of paying off on time. Tonight, he was going to do a bedlam job. It was true that he hadn’t exactly been assigned the job, but why would the Guild say no when he came back with pocketfuls of gold? Then they would recognize his talent and start to treat him with a little respect. All he had to do was steal 500 gold worth of goods from around town, and he knew exactly how to do it. It was as simple as waiting for nightfall and stealing some valuables from the marketplace. There was the jewelry stand—that was a definite target, and a few pretty pieces could be all he’d need for the job. If not, or if the lock proved to be beyond his skill-level, the other stands sold weapons and alchemy ingredients, and some of that could surely be useful as well. 

All he really had to do was make sure he got away with it without being spotted; after all, the guards in Riften were famous amongst the Guild for their ‘shoot first, ask questions later’ policy, and he’d heard plenty a tale about thieves heading up to try and steal from the village at night and not making it back to their beds after—not to mention he’d seen the bodies of failed criminals with his own eyes before. But he wasn’t too afraid: he was stealthy enough, and more than capable of defending himself. He would be just fine.

When night fell, Karkat slunk out of the Thieves Guild, grateful when no one commented on his departure—but then, there was no reason they would. The Guild weren’t his babysitters, nor were they his parents and he wasn’t a valuable enough member to worry about missing. Maybe after this, they’d show a little more concern for him. The Dunmer didn’t waste any time to slip into a crouch, as he was fairly certain anyone wandering the streets at this hour was automatically suspicious, unless they were also a guard, and the sooner he started to creep in the shadows, the safer he was. 

It didn’t take long for him to find his way to the marketplace, and a quick scope of the area saw it free of guards. Unfortunately, Karkat didn’t think to check the area for the recent Redguard tourist, and he didn’t spot her hiding out. He was too busy checking for the lit torches of oncoming guards, and concentrating on keeping himself quiet and out of sight. He snuck towards the jeweler’s stand, hesitating for a moment while he tried to locate a lockpick. Once it was in hand, he paused once more to check for guards before attempting the job. After a moment of fiddling, the pick snapped, and Karkat uttered a soft curse before locating another and starting at it again. He’d brought plenty of lockpicks—a tricky lock wasn’t about to stand in the way of his goals tonight, even if it took most of the night get it open.


	3. riften ii

The night wore on painfully slow for Terezi; it quickly became apparent that waiting for things to happen in Riften was a tedious feat. The darkness distorted her poor vision to a point where she couldn’t pick out anyone who wasn’t carrying a torch, making it near impossible to focus on anyone who wasn’t a guard. There was plenty of movement from underneath the bridge, but who it was, she couldn’t say. She toyed with the idea of going back to the inn and trying another approach, but that idea soon evaporated with movement nearby. Her full attention fell on the surrounding area, straining her hearing to try and pick out what she’d heard. The noise repeated again, but this time followed by a voice of some sort. Edging closer on the bridge, realization of what exactly she was listening to suddenly hit the Redguard.

Her hope of finding someone informative was quickly dashed by the sound of a breaking lockpick. She was either looking at a petty thief, or an incompetent guild member—either way, they didn’t appear much help to her investigation. As much as Terezi wanted to wait for a bigger catch, she couldn’t let smaller crimes go; they were just as heinous and intervention could prevent a shop owner from losing their goods to the murky underground. A quick glance showed no immediate guards, and going to alert one would take too much time. She couldn’t sit around forever; justice was wavering and only she could restore it to its full glory. 

There wasn’t a safe way of dealing with a criminal; sometimes the easily intimidated would run off without confrontation, whereas others would pull out a blade without a moment’s notice. Pulling out her own weapon—a sword likened to a Akaviri Katana, long ago nicknamed Pyralspite—would cost too much time: time that could be spent with an enemy’s dagger slicing through her. Terezi carefully reached for the iron sword she kept equipped instead, taking care not to shuffle around too much. It didn’t look like the thief was overly observant of the area, but that didn’t mean she could be sloppy too. Approaching the thief head on would give him time to run, which left the difficult option of circling around the walls of marketplace. Time was of the essence, and as soon as the sword was in her hands she started moving, ducking low and staying against the wall. 

So concentrated on his task, Karkat was blind to the Redguard quietly trying to close the distance between them. He would glance up occasionally for any sign of torchlight, as that always meant a guard was on the way, and that was the last thing he needed. The lock was trickier than he expected and he was starting to get annoyed that he hadn’t expected the jeweler’s stand to have a good lock, but he was getting tired of trying to slowly turn the pick without breaking it. He started to consider trying a different stall, mind running through other places where he could turn an easy profit—he was pretty sure Haelga had some fancy statue he could loot for money, and maybe he could swipe some decent ingredients from Elgrim’s Elixir’s.

But that was all assuming he could pick their locks, wasn’t it? Bitterly, Karkat shifted from the lockbox under Madesi’s stall, to the display case in the front. He hadn’t wanted to start there as it was much harder to hide from the front, but he was going to scream if he broke another lockpick in the same lock. There were some less fancy rings out of the case, as well, and he pocketed them without thinking, glad to have at least some profit from the nightmare this simple enough job was turning into. Sighing, he started on the display case, pleasantly surprised that this one seemed to be an easier lock. Things were going pretty smoothly, and the lock was almost unlocked—with any luck, he’d be able get through this one, nab the jeweled necklaces in the case, find something else in a more concealed location to steal, and then get back to the Guild with the guards and merchants none the wiser.

Terezi had no clue what stall the figure was at, but his shuffling cut through the silence of the night, making it almost the perfect condition to track him. The wall eventually cut out, leaving her inches from the thief. In darkness she was completely blind; there were no merging colors to pick apart, just endless black. She still couldn’t identify his exact location, meaning she was going to have to rely on chance and good guessing. Taking a muffled deep breath, she stepped out into the entrance, clutching the handle of the sword. This close to him, she could pick out a vague outline of his body, but still nothing substantial. The only thing that stood out to her was the smell of cement stones and delicious snowberries—not a scent she particularly wanted to associate with a criminal. However, there was barely anytime to think about that: the thief needed to be dealt with swiftly. With another breath, it was time to pounce. The next few actions came as a blur, but the end result was all that mattered. A sword under the thief’s throat, and a steady grip on his shoulder.

The lockpick snapped again, but this time it wasn’t the fault of his novice fingers—it was the tug of an enemy with the cool of a blade pressed to his neck. His hands were on the hilts of his daggers immediately, but he had to weigh his options here—if he pulled out his weapons now, his attacker would easily slice his neck open. Obviously she had something to say, or she wanted something from him, otherwise she would have just killed him and been done with it. Without moving his hands from his daggers, he let out a slow breath, unsure if he was more annoyed with her for ruining his night or himself for not noticing her before she had her blade to his throat.

“Well well well,” she sneered, having to put a conscious effort into keeping the blade from drawing blood. “What do we have here, sticky fingers?”

The best approach would just be to talk, Karkat figured, even if that was taking the bait she was offering. If she was some self-righteous tourist who thought she was saving Riften from scum—and he would bet his entire savings that’s what she was, they got a lot of those in Riften—then perhaps he’d be able to convince her he was higher up in the Guild, and things wouldn’t go in her favor if she messed with him. Maybe it would be wiser to be honest about his position and say that no one would notice if he didn’t turn up again, which would make him a valuable ally for her, if he also told her he had information on the Guild that she wouldn’t be able to get elsewhere? It didn’t have to be true, she just had to trust him for long enough that he could get the upper hand and get rid of her before she got rid of him. He shifted just slightly—not enough to alarm her, just enough so he didn’t have to feel the blade pressing so hard on his neck. “Okay, you caught me,” he grumbled, red eyes flickering to the hand on his shoulder while he wondered exactly who had interrupted his plans tonight. “What do you want from me?”

As the criminal spoke, it quickly became clear that Terezi didn’t like his attitude at all. To her it was the defeat of one simply playing tag with the promise of a new game, regardless of the outcome from the former. The injustice that always made Terezi’s blood boil wasn’t necessarily the act itself, but the consequences that followed. Stock would have to be replaced through money that wasn’t gained, as the previous goods fell into the black market. If they were hands to mouth tradesmen, then that could cost a family. If a whole stall was a looted, it could ruin small families, and having to skip a few meals would become the least of their problems. The most infuriating part was how criminals could own more than the men they were stealing from. Her mother had found thieves who had a greater net value than her own. It wasn’t fair, and it wasn’t right. The criminal she’d interrupted could have been a somebody, or he could have been a nobody. It didn’t matter. The intentions and consequences were still universal. 

Her contempt and deep repugnance against criminals was also a universal, and any hint that they deemed themselves deserving of the same rights was a hint too far. Still, she gave herself a mental pat on the back for everything going smoothly. So far she had the thief under control and it didn’t appear as if he was seconds from stabbing her, but it was impossible to make anything out that wasn’t directly in front of her. She had to be even more careful here, making sure her authority over him was clear from the start. Most thieves carried smaller weapons on them, which were almost invisible to Terezi’s poor sight. Meeting confrontation wouldn’t be the best outcome for her either, away from the reasoning of injuries. Her distrust of guards was probably the only thing she had in common with criminals, and she didn’t think trying to explain why she’d apprehended a thief was a conversation she’d find too pleasant. She’d have to get this whole thing over with quickly and quietly.

As her captured criminal inched away from her blade, she began pursing her lips in quick annoyance. She was the one who would be dictating just when the blade pressed against his skin. Terezi shifted so that she could bring her sword against his him again, pushing against his throat harder than she had the first time round. She wasn’t messing around here; he should have been thankful that she hadn’t slit his throat the minute she’d heard him. There had been many like that before him, and if they didn’t play by her rules then she’d be more than happy to add to her total. She could smash his head against a wall, drag his body to a tree and watch him hang without feeling anything; while she was sure her new friend wasn’t aware of her psychopathic tendencies, she’d have no qualms with acquainting him if he was slow to learn how she liked this routine to go.

The blade that Karkat had flinched away from moments before pressed right back to his neck, and this time, rather than struggling away from it, he decided he might as well let her keep it where it was—the more he struggled, the harder she was likely to press it into his neck the next time, and it was already too close to cutting his throat for comfort. 

“I want information.” Terezi ducked her head down so that her mouth was right behind the thief’s ear, whispering hisses that cut through the quiet of the city. “I like my summaries to be quick, accurate, and factual. I have a short patience and little remorse—so bear that in mind before you open your damnable mouth.” She relented her grip on the sword, deeming millimeters from his throat an appropriate breadth. “Talk.”

At least the grip eased up—slightly—when she demanded information from him. Now there was only the matter of what to tell her. In a different direction of the word, he could tell a few things about her right off the bat: he was right before, she was definitely another tourist come to save Riften from criminal scum, which meant she was probably full of herself and whatever bullshit idea of justice or goodness she believed in—it also likely meant that she would make quick work of him if he said the wrong thing, since she’d already identified him as an irredeemable criminal. Thinking on his feet wasn’t one of Karkat’s best talents but, it was that or her blade, so he might as well give it a try.

"Look," he sighed, slumping a bit in her grip. "I’m in the Guild, but I’m a nobody. They won’t… they won’t notice if I go missing. But just because they don’t pay attention to me, doesn’t mean I don’t pay attention to them, right? I know plenty about how they operate, I know where they operate, and you want information, right? Maybe," his fingers curled around the handles of his daggers nervously—things could go seriously wrong here, and he wanted to be ready in case he fucked up. "If you let me go, I can tell you what I know. The Guild doesn’t trust me with important missions, but they trust me with information. Just—give me some room to breathe and we can talk?"

"I don’t think so," Terezi laughed, low and dark. “Do you take me for an idiot? Yes I’ll let you go free, just a few inches enough for you to stab me with whatever weapon you’ve concealed." She peered over his shoulder a little, but the darkness of night still left it difficult to see—but knowledge didn’t necessarily need to come visually, she knew from experience that he’d have a weapon on him: everyone in Skyrim did. “Speaking of which, it would be in your best interest to drop anything of the sort because, if I don’t hear metal hitting against the ground, I’m going to play a sweet song on your vocal chords with my sword as the bow.

"So, here’s how it’s going to work, little boy; you’re going to do as I just said, and then I’m going to double check you didn’t lie. You lie, you die. Then I’m going to make sure you’re acceptable for taking into The Bee and Barb, where we are going to order a nice room with some food and drink. You are going to keep your mouth shut and have the pleasure of pretending that someone would ever show attraction to you for five minutes of your worthless life, before we have a lovely evening of chit-chat where you tell me everything you know and I decide not to kill you for being such a good dog. Be useful to me and I’ll let you live, do you understand me?" She hissed once more, accepting a reply of yes in the form of his weapons being dropped. In reality, there was no way she was going to let him live. She didn’t abide to such an honour code and, the minute she had everything she wanted out of him, he’d be snuffed out like a light. Still, he didn’t know that, and it was important to build up a fake sense of dependence on him. Another grunt would come along sooner or later, but once again—he didn’t need to know that.

Karkat let a breath hiss through clenched teeth, frustrated with the hassle this had become. He’d only intended to get some respect from the Guild and now he’d be lucky to get out with his life. It was probably for exact reasons like that the Guild didn’t trust him too, a realization that had him even more frustrated than a second ago. But there was nothing he could do about it. If he refused, or made a move against her, she’d kill him in a heartbeat, and that violin threat was uncomfortably specific. Reluctantly, he pulled his dagger from its sheath—slowly, so she wouldn’t think he was about to have a go at her and strike first, and let it clamber to the ground. He hesitated a moment, before he dropped his second dagger as well. It was concealed, but he didn’t want to risk her finding it and slitting his throat over it. He still had an iron dagger in his boot, but he decided to leave that one where it was, trying to search his boot would put her in a weaker position, and he might be able to break her hold and get away from her, and he’d just have to trust that would be a strong enough deterrent for her.

"There, there are my weapons," he informed, impatient for the cool of the blade to finally leave his throat. "Now can we get on with this whole romantic evening you’ve got planned or what?" He shifted slightly, trying to get a look over his shoulder—he still didn’t even know what his captor looked like after all, but it was dark, and he couldn’t get a good enough look at her from this angle. He supposed he’d just have to wait until they were in the inn, and once he got a good look at her, he’d at least know who to avoid once he’d managed to slip away.

"Okay Mr. Impatient, but it might be awkward if we turn up like this." Her attitude was snide but privately, and almost resentfully, she was slightly amused by the thief; at least Terezi would get a kick out of him before she killed him. “Not to do things in the wrong order for our first date, but I’d rather get a feel of you before we go inside: not that there seems to be much," Terezi pointed out, keeping her sword steady against his throat again as she used her free arm to check his body. Damn thieves always had so many trivial pockets, but years of being blind had her more than adept at quickly searching through them. She was also adept at knowing what gold and jewelry felt like, and it seemed his pockets were being weighed down—she’d have to help him out there. At least it seemed like he was telling the truth about any more weapons.

"I don’t think you’ll be needing this," she chided him, removing the items to place them back on the stall. Whether he’d actually stolen the gold wasn’t an issue to her, he could just reimburse the costs of breaking a pick in their lock. With that sorted, Terezi turned her attention back to the weapons he’d dropped—pocketing one dagger but keeping the other. In turn, she lowered her sword from his throat, only to loop her spare arm around his side until she could press the dagger under his armor and against his side. “We’re going to look like such a nice couple, and my arm isn’t going to leave your waist until I have our room for the night. Screw up and I’ll find out how much your liver is worth." 

Terezi moved to stand properly, pulling up her hostage with her. She had to squint around to work out the yellow-butter glow of the inn, but it still appeared to be open. “Easy now sabre cat,” she breathed, easily able to reach his ear with the height difference. Walking was pleasantly easy now that the thief was complying, and there was no real trouble until she entered the inn. Luckily there was no one around (which was pretty normal for crack of dawn), but the sudden change in lightening had Terezi startling a little. It was inevitable that he’d realize she was blind, but the longer she could put off showing weakness the better. Adjusting a little better, Terezi managed to scour out the innkeeper, quickly acquiring a room and cooing fondly over her exhausted husband and their long, long journey. It wasn’t until she was safely gone that Terezi was flipping the lock, pushing the thief away from her and instead drawing her sword again. She situated herself on the chair, leaving the kid to take the bed in front of her—at least with him under a candle she’d be able to get a better look at him.

For Karkat, it was awkward being led around Riften by a tourist who didn’t seem to know the area too well—he felt like he was a few steps ahead of her the whole time, which obviously didn’t work out too well for him with a dagger pressed to his gut. He wasn’t sure what to make of the story the woman fed Keerava, but the argonian wasn’t going to step in and help him; one of Karkat’s grunt jobs happened to be debt collecting, and Keerava didn’t always pay her dues on time. That was one thing she’d have on her side; Karkat had few allies here. He’d hoped maybe they would cross paths with a Guild member, as there were several who frequented the pub and also weren’t known grunts like himself, but it was quiet and empty. Nothing was working out in his favor tonight, it seemed. Once they were in the room, things were back to normal and her sword seemed ready to taste his blood, but at least this time she’d given him a bit of breathing room. Huffing dramatically, Karkat settled onto the bed—the advantage was it made reaching the knife in his boot seem a little less obvious, but for now, it was in his best interest to play nice and do as she told. 

"Let’s start with names."

"I’m not sure what good my name will do you," he grumbled, looking her over as he did. "I’m not a well-known thief, and I don’t think you really care about getting to know me on a personal level either." The candlelight was dim, but it told him plenty of helpful details. She looked to be Redguard, and fairly well-armed with it—he was almost positive that if it came to a fair struggle, she would overpower him. He’d need cunning and stealth to best her, but she seemed to have some cunning over her own, as well. He picked up on one more thing as well—cloudy white eyes. She was sightless; he wouldn’t have guessed as much by her quick blade or confidence, and he was sure she’d spent years working out how to work around seeing—but it didn’t mean it wouldn’t come in handy for him. Still, he didn’t comment on it, focusing instead on what she’d asked him so-as not to further anger her. "Whatever, I guess there’s nothing to do about it. My name’s Karkat. I’m guessing you’re not going to give me yours in return, but for the sake of pretending the date’s going well, I’ll just go ahead. What’s your name?"

As much as Terezi wanted to hate the repulsive brat in front of her, there was something about his attitude that riled her up even further but also left room for something akin to respect. She’d had grown men cry and beg for their lives, scared by the sight of a sword—but she’d taken this thief hostage and all but told him she was going to kill him, yet he still kept up what could be considered banter. It made her mouth twist into an unhappy shape, and left a dull yearning for a similar criminal. Still, his personality didn’t matter. He was a criminal, and she had never gone easy on one before. She was going to get information from him, and then kill him.

"I like to have names. It helps for future reference. Like being able to slip Karkat into conversation and see how far it gets me. I guess not very, you look like a scrawny bastard." And that was true, how the kid even managed to get into the Thieves Guild was somewhat of a mystery. On closer inspection, it seemed maybe she’d underestimated his age—he was smaller than her yes, but his attitude and voice seemed to suggest he wasn’t so young. She also noted that the cement taste seemed to be transferring from the gray of his skin, not his clothes. From there, it was easy enough to deduce he was a Dunmer, with the snowberry smell coming from his eyes. In all honesty, Terezi didn’t really feel like handing out her name to anyone in Riften; however, keeping up appearances was vital. “But since you were so polite, I’ll give you my name in return. Vriska." It wasn’t as if he would have heard of her, probably too busy rooting around in people’s houses to bother with politics or pirates. 

"Okay, Vriska it is." Karkat seriously doubted she’d bothered to give her real name to a criminal, but at least it was something to call her by. He supposed there was at least a chance it was her real name. It really didn’t matter much anyway—he would just tell her what she needed to know and be on his way—maybe mention to some of the higher-ups that there was a redguard snooping about and have them take care of her or something.

"So, Karkaaaaaaat," she dragged out his name, a joke with herself that always varied on humour. “Let’s pretend I care about your life for one moment—and by your life, I mean how exactly you joined the Thieves Guild, without the sob story of dead parents. How does someone with no visible potential or worth become useful to a guild like that? Do they scout you out, or do you go begging on your hands and knees until they accept you?" 

The line about dead parents and sob stories hit a bit of a nerve, but he didn’t let it show, frowning slightly as he tried to figure out whether to give an honest, albeit abridged story of how he’d ended up with the Guild, or to lie, but he wasn’t too good at bluffing and he didn’t want to anger her with an obvious lie. Honest and abridged would have to work. “I went to them—it just made sense to. I didn’t have to beg, they just gave me a test and I passed. I might be a scrawny sack of shit but I can do things not everyone in Skyrim can, and they found that useful.” He shrugged, deciding not to go into detail about whatever his mysterious talent was unless she pressed him. “I’m not sure how my joining the Guild gives you any useful information, though. Wiping out the Thieves Guild—that’s what you’re here to do, right?—isn’t going to start with the inspiration stories of grunts, Vriska. Why don’t you just ask the questions you need to ask, and we can work out your degradation kink later. We’ve still got all night to kill, after all.”

Terezi felt herself visibly twitch with irritation surrounding Karkat’s attitude. At this rate she’d be happier giving up on him and just slitting his throat to get everything over and done with. “Do you think you wipe out a deep rooted organization in a night? Go in with your sword drawn and have enough of a cocky little swagger to think you’ll make it out alive? I’m ambitious, but not stupid. Those who are higher in the guild will probably never be out in the open where I can even pass them, but grunts like you are everywhere. I just round up a few, question each one—play their stories up against each other until I figure out who is telling the truth and who isn’t. Which is another reason to be truthful with me, because if something doesn’t add up, then a degradation kink will be the least of your bodies problems.”

Still, his balls and mysterious talent had her attention. She looked over him a little closer then, almost wishing it was daytime so that she could clearly see the expression on his face—and maybe the expression after she punched it off of him. “A special talent? I can’t see how that adds up, seeing as you botched up something as simple as a jewelry stand—but humor me Karkat, or maybe I’ll humor you: what test do you end up passing?”

Karkat felt some small pride when he could see Vriska’s aggravation plain on her face, but he kept his lips from curling up, figuring it was safer not to irritate her any further. Not to mention, he was still confused about her—she looked to be blind, but she kept speaking as if she could see, and he wondered if it was part of her bluff, or if she wasn’t as blind as he thought. Perhaps she couldn’t see well? He supposed he should avoid trying to exploit her potential blindness until he was sure she actually was blind. Things could end very poorly for him if he made false assumptions about her abilities.

"It’s not that special," he amended, shrugging. "Plenty of people can do it. But plenty of people can’t, especially the sort who become thieves, so it gave me an advantage. But still, I’m guessing ‘humor me’ roughly translates into ‘tell me your probably bullshit special talent or I’ll do some uncomfortably specific gruesome thing to your body and then maybe sell it, or paint a picture of it using your blood as paint,’ blah blah blah. I can read, that’s all it is. But the riff-raff who need to join the Thieves Guild to survive in Skyrim aren’t usually literate, so I was a cut above the generic recruit, that’s it."

Karkat’s eyes flickered towards the nearest window, trying to figure out how much longer it would be until morning; Vriska was nice company and all, but being held hostage for information was getting old, fast. “As for the admission ritual, it’s pretty simple. You say you want to join, great. More members means more thieves means more money being brought in, how could they have a problem with that? But useless members are going to drag them down, so they just make sure you know what you’re doing. Put you to the test. Tell you to steal something and observe you while you do it to see your technique, you know? Obviously if you fuck up, or get caught, you’re probably not gonna make the cut. But that’s how it goes, unless they come to you, but I think they still make you prove yourself before you can join. Is that a good enough answer? I’m looking forward to the real hard-hitting questions here.”

"It’s good enough for the moment," Terezi nodded, thoughtfully mulling over the information. She’d expected a test, and it seemed her hunch had been right. This at least seemed to give a certain line of intelligence that needed to be followed—you couldn’t be a thief if you were an idiot, as dear Karkat was proving. But then again, he wasn’t that much of an idiot in general—was he? She pursed her lips then, slightly interested. It had been years seen Terezi had read a book, synthesia too unrefined to pick out letters and words. Although she had no interest in pursuing talk of it, the fact he was literate came as an intriguing surprise. As he had stated, not many were, and an assumed orphan wouldn’t have means to access material. Remaining on the topic any longer would make things difficult: he seemed like an interesting man, but she couldn’t overlook the fact he was a criminal. It was how it had to be. He did have a point about the hard-hitting questions though—it was time to stop with the petty banter and insults.

"I want names, from those on the same level as you to the highest member you can think of. I have a good memory, so don’t worry about listing too many. I want to know structure, routine. Friend and enemies. Distribution of wealth. Relationships between members. Every single aspect that you can think of, I want it combed. If it takes all day then it’s going to take all day and into tomorrow night if it has to," Terezi shrugged. For the moment, she had enough gold to spend—especially if it was worth doing so, and hunting down the guild was obviously the most worthy cause.

Maybe he shouldn’t have asked for the hard-hitting questions after all; he couldn’t think of any way to satisfy Vriska’s demands, get out with his life, and not completely betray the Thieves Guild. Chewing his lip for a moment, he tried to think of some names to list of, members who didn’t matter and wouldn’t know enough to fuck things up for everyone else.  
"Okay," he sighed, raking a hand through his messy mop of hair. "First of all, there’s not really anyone else on the same rank as me—as far as I know. I don’t know if you don’t care about lower ranks than me or if you’re just assuming I’m the lowest there is, but I can give you some names there. As it turns out, the inner circle of the Guild don’t like their grunts knowing exactly who’s in charge of everything, so the higher ups I know might not even be that high. But… there’s Etienne, Sapph—"

His words were interrupted by a loud growl piercing the air, a rumble come from it that made the ground shake. His hands moved instantly to grab his daggers, fingers clenching around empty air as he remembered Vriska was in possession of the daggers now. “What the fuck was that?” he asked, regardless of the fact that she was an enemy—because if that growl had come from an enemy, it made Vriska’s threats seem a lot emptier. That in mind, he moved towards the window, careful not to move to close to his captor, trying to peer through the darkness at what had created such a sound. There was shouting outside, and it was frenzied, and hard to make out, but one word was repeated again and again: ’dragon.’ And then he was moving away from the window as the sky lit up like fire—not like fire really, he was pretty sure it actually was fire. So the stories were true, it seemed, and it was only a matter of time before a dragon wound up here. Tonight was not his goddamn night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> we felt bad that people were reading this under the impression that there was more than there actually was! so this is the first 'real' chapter, the rest will be at this length or longer.
> 
> we also have a tumblr now! follow us at http://coolskyrimau.tumblr.com/


	4. riften iii

Terezi had only heard the stories of dragons and certainly lacked the experience to go outside and confront one, but the chance to experience one first hand was boosting her adrenaline further than she’d ever known. Even the thought of what was outside left a dangerous grin on her face, itching to be with the action. Ignoring the thief, she moved to get a better ‘look’ at the commotion outside, by smelling around Karkat and the view his body blocked. It wasn’t as if she could make much out through a layer of glass, but it wasn’t difficult to put two and two together to get dragon. However, she still had Karkat to deal with—she didn’t want to lose him without killing him, but she also didn’t want to lose the dragon. Maybe she’d get lucky and the kid would get killed by the dragon! 

"We’re not done yet, but we probably could be if we stay here. I’m assuming you know how to fight," Terezi looked over at him, only praying that he wasn’t going to run off the second they set foot outside. She had no idea what reaction he’d give, but hopefully giving him directions to follow was enough. “I want you alive, stick with me and we’ll both be fine—got it?" It was probably best to give him back his weapons, no idiot would fight a girl over a dragon, and if he felt she was protecting him then maybe he’d watch her back for ten minutes. With that, she handed them back to him, heading out the door as soon as she was sure he had a grasp on them.

Karkat was ready to fire back a stream of complaints—who was dumb enough to fight a dragon? Why couldn’t they just wait it out somewhere somewhere safe? Or at least he could, and she could get herself killed and solve his problems—but then she passed his daggers back to him, and he wasn’t sure if that meant she trusted him not to run away or stab her in the gut with it, but it… felt that way, and it was enough to stay his hand for the time being. Begrudgingly, he followed her out of the Bee and Barb, deciding the best time to sneak away was probably in the chaos of combat, as opposed to the inn, where she would notice right away and probably kill him. That was fine—all he needed were some shadows and he could disappear. He followed behind her, impatient for the moment she got drawn into the fight—killing a dragon and saving a town was probably some sort of heroic, justice bullshit, surely—and then he could slip away, maybe ask for a job in a far-off town and avoid Riften for a while. Vriska turned back to check he was still following, and he hurried his pace to keep up with her, not wanting her to look back and see him slip off. He’d make sure his timing was good; he was done messing up tonight.

The sudden light made it easier to make out what was happening, helping Terezi head towards it. She’d thought plenty about what she’d do at this moment, but suddenly it was hard to grasp at anything. There would definitely be fighting, and an iron sword wouldn’t cut it—it’s not like anyone would be paying attention to her in the commotion anyway. She withdrew Pyralspite instantly, only giving a brief glance to check that Snowberry Sticky Fingers was still following. "No," she suddenly hissed, attention caught by the guards and their weapons. “No. No. They’re going to kill it!”

Her shouting didn’t surprise him—there was a dragon nearby, and they could be killed any second by it, if they weren’t careful, but then he actually listened to her words, face contorting in confusion. “Of course they’re going to kill it!” he shouted back at her, nearly shoving into her when a guard rushed passed him and almost knocked him down. “It’s a fucking dragon, it’s going to kill everyone here and burn down the village if it isn’t stopped!” Maybe she was more insane than he thought; she couldn’t possibly want to save the murderous reptile, could she?

"They can’t kill it!" She shouted straight back, losing her facade from earlier in a fit of distress. It was harder to keep an eye on things when so much was happening, but she kept concentrated on the noise, weaving around civilians who were probably just criminals. She couldn’t tell exactly where the guards were, but maybe taking some of them out would help the dragon. There had to be some way to calm it without killing it, but no one had ever tried to know. If they just gave it a chance, then maybe there would finally be a resolution instead of just slaughtering dragons on every occasion they got. 

But no matter how fast Terezi wanted to move, she couldn’t defy the laws of gravity and mass, which meant that the dragon was quickly slipping out of her reach, and the cries of it screaming were the worst sound she’d ever heard. “It’s dying,” she swallowed, managing to push her stamina a little further. Even if she couldn’t stop its murder, at least she could give it a proper burial or stop collectors from profiting off of it. Anything to keep its dignity intact. Soon the dragon came in sight, and Terezi couldn’t help but gasp at the sight of it—it was as if everything was unreal, and it was only the harsh reality of the dragon’s dying cry that put things back into perspective.

This whole situation was getting too ludicrous and exhausting for Karkat to keep up with. They couldn’t kill it? Why did she care about the dragons anyway? They were scaly, murderous beasts that were liable to destroy what was left of this shitty country. Even his father’s morals wouldn’t hold water here; these creatures had given no sign of not being monsters, so what reason was there to think otherwise? Things didn’t accidentally start attacking an entire town. But Vriska’s nonsense didn’t matter, and things could still work out. Maybe she would get distracted trying to save the thing, and then he could slip away from her. Either way, she was right, it was dying, and it was too late for either of them to do anything about it, either.

She could feel her stomach drop as she realized it was finally dead, ignoring the cheers of Riften and slowly walking towards it, nose crinkling at the sudden harshness of what she thought was burning—only a thousand times worse, because she couldn’t usually smell fire. “What’s tha—” Terezi turned to ask her temporary follower, only to be blinded by a harsh light. She brought her hand up to her nose instinctively, trying to block it out. But that didn’t work well, because soon enough it felt like she was on fire, but that was impossible? Her heart leapt out of her throat as she panicked, placing her hand back on her sword. As quickly as it happened, it was over—and Terezi was left breathless and frightened, body temperature apparently normal again. She breathed in harshly, shaking at the murmurs breaking out around them, but too shaken up to hear them.

Karkat’s breath fell out of him in shock. Everything was light, and the light was pouring out of the dragon’s skeleton and surging towards Vriska, and she was just absorbing it; she looked to be glowing herself for a moment, before everything was quiet again. The cheering had become a hushed muttering. He’d read as many books as he could get his hands on as a child, and that included books on Nordic legends. He was pretty sure he knew what had just happened to her; that she had just absorbed the power, the soul from that dragon and taken it into herself. And the collective muttering of the guards matched his own thoughts: 

"Dragonborn." 

Even if her body didn’t stop shaking, at least Terezi’s hearing started to fade back into some replica of normal. Everyone still seemed to be murmuring, but at least this time she could make it out. It was even more surreal than seeing the dragon, because here was a title that Terezi would have been jealous over on someone else, and yet it was being used to refer to… her? She’d always been drawn to dragons, but she was pretty sure it wasn’t because she was affiliated with them. "No, that’s not—" she instinctively rebutted, wishing she had the ability to scan over facial features. "My name is Terezi, not… not Dragonborn," she shook her head, unsure if she was trying to convince everyone else or herself. She suddenly felt the most alone she’d ever been since her mother’s execution, fumbling for someone to give her direction, but that someone didn’t exist, and Terezi had to face the facts herself. Had she really just absorbed a dragon’s soul? Was that really what that was? Maybe she was just dreaming, and she’d wake up in Riften ready to start her attack on the Thieves Guild. But hadn’t she already done that? And a look in Karkat’s direction seemed to solidify some kind of reality.

For a moment, Karkat felt some pity for Vriska; she looked like she been tossed into some mess that she didn’t want to be part of at all, and if she was against killing dragons, then surely being the only person alive in Skyrim with the ability to kill dragons and keep them dead was… probably an unwelcome ability. And then she was trying to dissuade the crowd, insisting that she wasn’t Dragonborn and—did she say her name was Terezi? He squinted, unsure which name to believe. Would she tell her real name to a criminal she believed she was going to gut later, or the entire collective town of Riften, possibly littered with criminal scum that she might not be able to even notice? He supposed it didn’t matter what name she chose; he knew what she looked like, and anyway, she was the Dragonborn now, and everyone would know of her—which meant every thief would know to look out for her. He’d be fine.

Only… not only did he know the Dragonborn’s face… she knew his. And he’d given her his real name too, assuming she would be another bumbling vigilante that the Guild would take care of. Sure, maybe she would become distracted with the title and all the responsibilities that surely came along with it but… it was also possible that she would stick to her whole black and white justice system thing, and continue with her deluded task of taking down the Guild. If he tried to run now, she would know his face, she would know his name… she would be able to find him and kill him if she wanted to. Suddenly, running amidst the chaos—any chaos, seemed like a fool’s idea, but if he stayed, she’d kill him anyway, wouldn’t she?

Looking away from Karkat, Terezi turned her attention back to the dragon, going right up to it to confirm for herself. Her hands certainly touched bone, which was odd. “It’s completely gone,” she frowned, trying to look for the tiniest hint of flesh, but none remained. It wasn’t even as if the skeleton was charred like it would have been from a man-made fire, and suddenly Terezi’s hands were shaking all over again. Maybe her affinity for dragons wasn’t a coincidence? Maybe, subconsciously, she’d always been seeking them out because of… this? "Satakal have mercy," she finally exhaled, louder and more confident. Maybe it was the most far-stretched conclusion, but stranger things had happened. There’d been no reports of such a thing happening in the other dragon encounters, and the thing still felt pretty dead. Of course she’d come across the books detailing this, and maybe—even if later she was wrong—maybe in this small moment, she could believe what was happening around her, and live out a childhood fantasy. Instead of denying the claims once more, she simply laughed, filled with adrenaline and a small sense of growing hope. 

"I’m the Dragonborn." 

"Can’t believe I got caught by the fucking Dragonborn," Karkat hissed through his teeth, still unsure where to go from here. At the very least, Vriska—or Terezi?—was looking back to her normal self, the fearful girl from a few moments ago turned back to the borderline sociopath that had dragged him into the inn with a knife to his liver. Begrudgingly, he decided the best chance he had at surviving was to prove himself useful enough for whatever her name was to keep alive, and maybe once he’d earned her trust, he could finally get away from her. Sheathing his daggers and pushing his way through the crowd, Karkat touched a hand to her shoulder for a brief moment, merely trying to pull her attention away from the dragon. "So, Vriska—or Terezi, was it? What’s the plan of action here? What are we doing?"

Terezi flinched as Karkat briefly touched her, unused to contact that didn’t end with stabbing someone. She narrowed her eyes at him in an attempt to blindly scowl at him, unsure if she was supposed to draw comfort from his touch. Still, he hadn’t stabbed her yet, and she hadn’t stabbed him. Why hadn’t she stabbed him? She skimmed her vision to around them, still full of people watching and staring. Terezi didn’t like that: she was used to flitters of attention over her eyes, but nothing to this extent. With that, she turned her attention to Karkat once more, having to decide if she really trusted a criminal enough not to kill her when her back was turned. She could only sigh at her potentially—and almost definitely—stupid decision. "We’re leaving, collectively as in together. There’s too many people and apparently I just introduced myself as the one and only Dragonborn to a city of thieves, so things might not be too pretty if I hang about. Or if you hang about either, seeing as pretty much everyone can see, and has seen, us together," she almost laughed, but resisted from the logic that was starting to settle in over the initial adrenaline. She needed to get out, find somewhere where people weren’t gawking and think about what she was doing, or going to do. Did being Dragonborn really change anything? All this was assuming she even was the Dragonborn in the first place, instead of one big misunderstanding. 

Karkat didn’t like the idea of following whatsername out of Riften, but she was leaving him little choice on the matter. As had been his plan from the start, it seemed he would just have to keep biding his time. Maybe his own knowledge would come in handy and he could slip away from her and leave her clueless, or maybe he could deliberately lead her somewhere marked as dangerous and distract her with the potential threat. Something would come up, he was sure of it. He just had to wait for it.

Finally sheathing her blade again, Terezi started making her way out of Riften, trying to ignore everyone and focus on her own thoughts—apart from they could only circle around what she was supposed to do with Karkat. It was as they started leaving the gates that she remembered to answer his question. “As you asked—and I guess this makes things less awkward for later—of course Vriska isn’t my real name, but unfortunately Terezi is. I guess I should have been less shell-shocked and more aware, but that’s kind of difficult to manage when you’re basically inhaling a dragon. I’m guessing Karkat isn’t your real name either,” she sighed, before glancing at him again. “Actually, if you were dumb enough to assume Vriska was my real name, then I’m going to assume you were dumb enough to give me yours.”

Karkat scanned the crowd for Guild members as he walked on, eventually spotting another low-leveled grunt, probably out to inspect the dragon attack, and, after checking that the Dragonborn wasn’t watching, he held up his hands and pressed his wrists together, in an effort to signify to his colleague that he was a captive. They seemed to understand, but he didn’t know if anything would be done about it—they could always find another literate lackey to handle shadowmarks, he supposed. But it didn’t hurt to hope—in the mean time, ignoring whatever she was saying would probably only garner suspicion, and his eyes narrowed as he picked up on her blatant condescension again. 

"Maybe I’m just an honest guy," he shrugged, taking a few quick steps to meet her pace, rather than lagging behind.

"An honest guy," she laughed, harsh and genuinely amused. 

"But I didn’t think Vriska was your real name, and I’m still not sure I believe Terezi is. Although, it does feel like it suits you a little better, I guess," he continued, ignoring the clear mockery in her voice. He fell silent for a moment as he left the city, letting his head drop so that the guards wouldn’t pay him any mind. Even some of the guards here were thieves, but it didn’t mean they wouldn’t turn in actual Guild members either. 

"I’m sure my mother will be pleased to know that," Terezi replied, pulling a face at him as if to say ‘I don’t give a shit if you think it does or doesn’t suit me.’ At least there was a lull in conversation where Terezi had her thoughts to herself, mind reeling with possibilities. Had there ever been a way to tell she was Dragonborn? Maybe something from her childhood? But all she could think of was play-fighting with Vriska and that wasn’t exactly different from anyone else’s childhood. Her thoughts were interrupted by Karkat, and the fact it was for such a stupid line of thought had her irritated. 

"So I don’t understand why we’re leaving collectively, as in together, to be perfectly honest. I mean, if you’re planning to kill me doesn’t it make more sense to just get it over with? I don’t even know enough about the Guild for me to be of much use to you, do I?" 

“Firstly, I wouldn’t be stupid enough to kill you in front of a crowd of people. Secondly, if I was going to kill you, I wouldn’t have given back your weapons, and I would have double checked every portion of your skin and clothes because I couldn’t do that with a sword to your throat. Thirdly, I would have kept telling you that Vriska is my real name, on the small chance that you escaped—which you wouldn’t, because I don’t strike to miss.” Sighing as if this was all basic stuff to pick up on, Terezi forced herself to continue with the obvious. “So we can safely conclude that I don’t plan to kill you—unless you keep proving you’re a moron, which you are, if you had any doubt about that.” 

Karkat’s fingers flitted to his daggers, wondering how far he could push her before she pushed back, with the blade of her sword most likely. “So, is that really it? Are you really forcing me to tag along with you for all your bullshit Dragonborn stuff that I’m sure everyone will be wanting you to do now, just so that when you’re in the mood to bother with the Guild again, I’ll still be around for information? Also where are we even going? It’s the middle of the night and there’s bound to be enemies out here—you didn’t even let me pick up my stuff you know, I have like, these daggers on me and nothing else. You’re probably going to have to work hard to protect me; if I get hurt and die, you won’t get your information, will you? Or your… whatever it is you’re keeping me around for.” 

Terezi almost groaned aloud as Karkat started talking again, wishing there was a way for him to shut up for five minutes so that she could think. “Bullshit Dragonborn stuff?” She grimaced, thinking it over. She hadn’t actually considered about that, which was why she wanted Karkat to stop talking so that she could. In any case, although she didn’t know exactly what she was going to do, she knew what she didn’t want to do. “No. They want the Dragonborn to kill the dragons, but that’s not what I want. I’m not going to do that. But I’ll make sure to protect you from all the deer and foxes, so don’t cry little Karkat," she hushed him, sickly sweet with sarcasm. “I don’t know if you think I keep giving you empty threats, but I’m more than capable of looking after myself, and if you can’t look after yourself then I’ll have to carry that burden until we can find—and I can trust you with—legitimate weapons." There was no way she’d let him go back for his weapons, not just for the obvious reason of him running away, but for the fact they were probably stolen. “As for where we’re going," she hummed, before shrugging with resignation. “Just away from Riften. I need to think. I don’t think there’s anywhere nearby worth going, so we can camp if you’re desperate to sleep. If not, we can just keep walking."

"If I’m desperate to sleep," Karkat scoffed, red eyes flitting about the perpetually autumn forests of the Rift. "You can say you won’t kill me all you want but I’m not going to go to sleep and just take your word for it—just like I’m sure you won’t sleep around me. It’s gonna be a fun, sleepless journey for both of us." Surely they’d have to sleep eventually, but maybe he could hold out longer than her, and slip away then. He didn’t trust her not to finish him off then—although perhaps she had some kind of honor code that went against killing someone who was defenseless?—but she couldn’t trust him not to run off not to spare her. He wasn’t sure how long they’d even be able to survive in a company of so much distrust; surely the paranoia would be the death of both of them.

"Not that you’ll take my word for it," Karkat shrugged, glancing towards her face for a moment before back to the path ahead. "But I’m not stupid enough to kill Skyrim’s last chance of survival. I might not like you, and I might not like Skyrim, but I’m not a big enough asshole to doom an entire country for my own sake. I mean, you’re the Dragonborn…" he trailed off, still amazed that he’d been stupid enough to let himself get caught up in all this. "You’re the Dragonborn and you don’t want to kill dragons. How perfect is that?" Perhaps Terezi’s life didn’t matter too much—Skyrim was fucked one way or the other.

"I’ve gone longer without sleeping," she simply shrugged in reply, although he did have a point. One of them would have to break at some point, however Terezi wasn’t overly worried if it had to be her. If push came to shove she wasn’t enough of an idiot to keep going—she was a pretty light sleeper, if Karkat tried to escape then she’d just have to make sure there were enough ways for him to mess up and notify her of it. He didn’t seem capable of well thought out plans in the first place, she’d have to hand in her own self-respect if he managed to escape under her nose. She also kept quiet at his comment about not wanting to kill dragons, simply pursing her lips and carrying on walking. It wasn’t as if she had to explain herself to him, and whatever conclusions he wanted to draw from her withdrawal of dragon slaying was his problem—not hers. 

The silence left Karkat a moment to think, likely while Terezi did the same--and after a moment of thought, he recalled something he’d read about a while ago. It might have been a dangerous skill to remind her of… but at the very least, it could prove her position. “Hey Terezi, actually, if you’re really Dragonborn, you should be able to shout, right? Maybe you should give it a try?” And then if it turned out she wasn’t the Dragonborn, Karkat wouldn’t have to feel as bad for doing… whatever needed to be done to steal away from her.

"Shout?" She finally spoke again, mulling over it. Did she even know a shout? Maybe if she thought hard enough about those books all those years ago, then she’d be able to think of something. She’d spent many years pouring over Hela Thrice-Versed’s translations of dragon into the Tamrielic language. Although she’d been too young to really understand the impact behind the words, she’d been able to re-draw out words and phrases that she’d learnt in the original scribings of dragons. Maybe… she frowned to herself, looking back at Karkat for some brief guidance. How he even knew of shouts was something she’d have to ask later. She swallowed down her self-doubt for what would hopefully be the last time, instead trying to think with her mouth instead of her brain.

Almost instantly, she managed to do just as he’d said, flinching back from the sound of her own voice. Apparently flinching was getting off lightly, because her captive looked like he’d just fallen over—which she supposed she’d literally caused him to. A smug smile twisted her lips, wondering if he’d expected a different result. At least she’d know not to shout at people for future reference, although pushing over Mr. Karkat Smart-Mouth again was potentially too great an opportunity to pass up.

It didn’t take long for Karkat to regret asking Terezi to try out shouting, because soon the force of just her voice alone had him floored, his hands immediately reaching for his weapons in a panic—but then she was just laughing, and his grip on the daggers loosened slightly, though his panic didn’t dissipate so easily. Out of breath from the sheer force of Terezi’s shout, Karkat simply took her hand, letting her pull him to his feet without thinking much of it. “Okay, so clearly you can shout. I guess there’s no more debate here; you’re the Dragonborn.”

"Wow you were right," she laughed, unapologetic and slightly pleased with herself. She felt like she was humming with a pleasant weight, and everything was suddenly a thousand times better. Even Karkat couldn’t damper her sudden confidence, and she offered a hand to him on a whim of the moment. “There’s no doubt now, huh?" She grinned down at him, self-assured. “C’mon, you may think I still want to kill you but right now I want to savor this moment by not dying of starvation. We can find somewhere to stop and eat, even if we’re not going to be doing any sleeping." 

His brows furrowed, red eyes turning to slits as he turned his glare on his maybe-blind companion. “Oh yeah, let’s go hunting. Good plan, I’m sure if I’m quiet enough, even little daggers like these will be enough to handle elks.” He could only pray elks would be the least of his worries—wolves, sabre cats, and bears were all commonplace in Skyrim, and the Rift was known to have several Spriggans about as well. “If you’d let me go get my bow, maybe we’d have a chance at catching something. Or do you usually charge in blind with just your fancy sword when you’re trying to catch dinner?”

If there was something Terezi had quickly learnt about her hostage, it was that there was nothing he wouldn’t complain about. She wasn’t even sure he was concerned about his situation, just generally annoyed by everything in general and having to voice it. Maybe she’d have to teach him that he was capable of keeping his thoughts inside his head, if he tried hard enough. “Archer, huh? Figures. But for your information, that is literally how I catch every meal. This fancy sword can reach quite a bit further than my usual one, and I’m not one for bow and arrows. Why are you complaining, can’t you just set them on fire? Kill two birds with one stone? Shut up whining if you have the means,” Terezi sighed, wondering if Karkat seriously was more effort than he was worth. "Anyway, goats are pretty stupid. You can go right up to them and they won’t move—kill ‘em cleanly. Well, as clean as it gets—there’s still going to be delicious blood all over the floor, such a waste," she sighed again, but unsheathed her sword regardless. “So am I killing this goat by myself while you go make a fire or what?"

Karkat tensed slightly at the mention of using fire to hunt, unsure of how to answer. It was natural that she assumed he could use magic, he supposed—all elves were meant to be gifted in magic, dunmer especially gifted in schools of destruction. Terezi already thought poorly of him, he was pretty sure the last thing he needed was her to know that he couldn’t use magic at all. He already couldn’t sneak or pick a lock like a competent person—he didn’t want to get into it, and he did shut up, deciding biting his tongue was the best way out of this conversation without revealing himself. But then she offered to hunt instead, and he was relieved for a moment, until she tasked him with making the fire—should have been easy for a dunmer, should have been able to light a fire in his sleep. “Fine, get the food and I’ll light the fire.” If he was lucky, her target would run off and she’d give chase, which might give him time to slip back to Riften. In the mean time, he needed her to at least get some distance so he could light a fire. “I suppose I’ll gather firewood with my daggers,” he grumbled, hoping he’d be able to keep a fire going with tinder and kindling, let alone being able to start a fire without magic. He certainly had his work cut out for him tonight.

"Is there anything you can do without complaining? Maybe I’ll cut out your tongue for dinner. Do you think it will taste just like elk? All I am asking you to do is light a fire, I don’t care if you light the goat on fire at this rate,” Terezi shouted at him, starting to lose her patience with his complaining. Usually she’d be down for banter, even encouraging it—but she still hadn’t had a minute of peace to think for herself, and it wasn’t like she could escape his idiocy by going elsewhere. To save poor Karkat from having to do any work, Terezi turned her attention to her bag, pulling out some leftover firewood from the previous day’s camping and all but throwing it at him. At least that would keep him occupied for all of ten minutes.


	5. riften iv

Karkat flinched when Terei all but threw the firewood at him, complaining to himself as he arranged it in a proper shape for a campfire, before he wandered the perimeter for some tinder and kindling to get it started—the fuel Terezi had provided would keep it lit, but be difficult to light. And how was he going to light it in the first place, anyway? He’d dug himself into some hole here, hadn’t he? As he picked around for dead branches, he noticed a patch of mushrooms—picking one, he identified them as bleeding crowns, an ingredient he often used in alchemy. He already knew all its uses, being such a common ingredient: fortify block, resist magic, weakness to poison and weakness to fire. _Weakness to fire_ —that was it, wasn’t it? And he started scouring around, this time looking to the trees in search of juniper berries, doubtful that he’d manage to find any of the other ingredients here, and after a bit of hunting, he found and plucked them, hurrying back to their camp. From there, he centered them in the fireplace, using rocks as a makeshift mortar and pestle, and then he spread the pulp on the branches, careful to wipe and clean his hands thoroughly before he had a go at lighting it.

While Karkat busied himself with the task she’d given him, Terezi turned and scanned the open space around them, working on picking out the different colours and shapes. Sometimes it took a while, but at least it was something. Luckily, it seemed the goats were as stupid as ever, and she managed to pick them out without taking too much time. Checking that Karkat was a) not running away and b) not screwing up, Terezi began to slowly make her way over to the goat, wondering if there was anything in Skyrim they would run away from. Apparently not her, or a blade. It took a little of circling to finally get face to face with it, but from there it was simple enough to slice its neck. Throwing another glance in Karkat’s direction to check he was still there, Terezi started dragging her kill back. She took a seat opposite the fire that Karkat was still poking around with, and instead focused her attention on the goat. She kind of liked skinning them, it was something that you had to practice to get right, and the fulfillment of doing so cleanly was pretty great. letting her fingers run over the meat as she went, checking that no wool was left.

“I’m almost done,” Karkat grumbled, rubbing the sticks together as fast as he could until the tinder finally caught, lighting up quickly as if he’d soaked the wood in oil, which he supposed he sort of had. Breathing a sigh of relief at finally managing the fire, Karkat scooted some more of the smaller sticks closer to the fire and laid them against the fuel, praying his poison would be enough to help the them catch. “The fire should be all set, you can probably start cooking the goat in a minute.”

"I thought I’d never heard those words," Terezi retorted, wondering why it had taken him so long. Maybe he was just being stingy about using magic—it would make sense not to reveal how well versed he was with it as captive, which left her assuming that his skills weren’t too high. She could deal with the average mage, a rank obviously proven so by his lack of attempt to escape. Even if Karkat’s pigheadedness over the fire had cost time, it certainly painted a better understanding of his skills. With final confirmation of the fire’s status, Terezi started rummaging around for something to spear the goat with, so that they wouldn’t be eating meat seasoned in five layers of ash.

"Please tell me you at least know how to cook, because I can’t promise this will be done all the way through—Redguard’s aren’t the type to worry about food poisoning, you see," she winked, laughing at her own private joke. Even if she turned it into something less serious, it was true. Terezi could stomach pretty much anything, hardly ever sick or suffering from any side effects. It was useful on a personal level, but didn’t really help anyone else around her. “Mind you, I can’t ever remember hearing someone die from eating goat. You’ll probably be fine."

Sighing at the Redguard’s antics, Karkat followed her over to the goat, cutting the good chunks of meat—mainly the legs and whatnot—away from the rougher, less appetizing meat of the goat, taking the stick she’d found and spearing only what he’d pulled away. “If you just spear the whole fucking goat it’ll never cook,” he told her, rolling his eyes as he set the sticks up over the fire. “And if you don’t need to cook it all the way through, why don’t you just eat it raw, huh? You could just enjoy that delicious blood you mentioned before with your apparently iron stomach.” Rotating the meat over the fire took forever and got tiring very quickly, and Karkat found himself envious of Terezi’s supposed ability to eat meat without it cooking all the way through. He supposed it was probably a Redguard thing—they were resistant to poison, weren’t they?

"Because my mother brought me up to have a shred of manners and manners is not getting goat’s blood everywhere. Besides, you look like you spook at everything. Do you really want me to sit here and eat raw goat’s meat as if it’s nothing? It could easily be your flesh, you know," she shrugged, cutting off portions of the meat Karkat had left and all but shredding it through her mouth. Food wasn’t really a luxury she bothered with for taste, seeing as taste depended on the colour more than anything else. But if Karkat was offering, then she wasn’t going to be polite and wait for him any longer.

Terezi let their conversation lap into silence as she ate, thoughts circling around how to deal with Karkat. They both couldn’t sleep, that was for sure. She’d have to find someway to restrain his magic usage too, but she wasn’t entirely sure how that was possible. Maybe a potion to reduce magicka? He really was proving to be more trouble than he was worth, but Terezi wasn’t ready to throw in the towel with the Thieves Guild just yet—a Pyrope never gave up. Still, there was no denying that he was the less than ideal hostage, and killing him still looked like the better option unless she could find some other reason for keeping him around—and alive. "Hey, when you’re done cooking, and/or eating that—whatever you plan on doing with it, I have somewhat of a task for you, if you can manage that without whining for twenty minutes."

When Terezi proposed as task for him, he squinted at her, unsure if he should carry out cooking the goat until it was burnt and then eating it as slowly as possible for the sake of putting off whatever her mysterious mission was, but cooking a goat was boring as hell. “Assuming it doesn’t take forever or make me leave the fire, I think I can do whatever your task is while the goat cooks? And that’s assuming I actually agree; I can go twenty minutes without whining if I have a good enough reason.” Frowning, he twisted the stick slightly, letting the meat cook more evenly. “Although, chances are you’ll just threaten me if I don’t agree to whatever your task is so I guess you can lay it on me, I don’t really have a choice in the long run.”

"You’re learning how things work pretty quick, I’m almost impressed but I don’t think you will ever reach that level with me, I’m afraid. You’re heartbroken, I know," she made sure to add, already predicting too much sass to be bothered with. Whatever he was going to say, Terezi was already sure she’d heard it in the brief time they’d already spent together. But Karkat agreeing made the whole thing easier, and she once again began rummaging around in her bag.

"I really am," Karkat replied, giving the stick an idle twist and thinking about just jumping into the fire and being done with it. "After everything in Riften, I have to say I am deeply hurt that you’ve led me on like this. Not very heroic, I’ve got to say." He reached to touch the meat, not bothered by the flame, the one thing he’d successfully inherited from his kind, resistance to fire, disappointed to find that it was still too tender and rare for his tastes. With the meat still inedible, he gave Terezi back her fair share of his attention which, by her standards was probably all of it.

"Pfft," Terezi laughed in response to his quip, the same sarcastic tone she’d been using the whole way through their conversation. “It’s not about being heroic, is that really the impression you get? You’re either terrible at reading people or I’m terrible at coming across. Obviously it must be the latter," she joked, before frowning at herself. Terezi had no idea how she kept getting swept up in Karkat’s banter—he’s a criminal, she reminded herself. A nobody. Nothing. Dead man walking. Every criminal she’d come across had been a vile piece of shit, and it was certainly easier that way. Hating people was easy, but attempting to joke with them wasn’t. There hadn’t been a need for what she was looking for in a while, but the familiar feel of worn leather was enough to know she had it. "Here, and be careful with it," Terezi warned, producing an old book. “You said you can read--well, you’re gonna prove it. You can skip to the end if you want, I like that part best. Plus the rest of it is literally just translating language, I doubt someone like you would be interested in that," she waved, passing the book over to him. “So read away Karkat; assuming you were telling the truth.”

With the book produced, Karkat’s red eyes widened, taking it from her without complaint, sliding his fingers over the leather cover and inspected the symbol on the front. He couldn’t remember ever seeing the book before, even in his father’s collection. Opening up the book, he ran his fingers over the title page, Dragon Language: Myth No More. He was sure he’d never read this book before, and he flipped past the title page to the first real pages, eyes gliding over the words as he took them in.

> Dragon.
> 
> The very word conjures nightmare images of shadowed skies, hideous roaring, and endless fire. Indeed, the dragons were terrifying beasts that were once as numerous as they were powerful and deadly. But what most Nords don't realize is that the dragons were in fact not simple, mindless beasts. Indeed, they were a thriving, intelligent culture, one bent on the elimination or enslavement of any non-dragon civilization in the entire world. It therefore stands to reason that the dragons would require a way to communicate with one another.
> 
> _That they would need to speak._

Having read as much, he felt he understood more about Terezi’s morals, and he had a feeling this book was more than just a paperweight to her. But he was aware that he’d stayed quiet for a long moment, and if Terezi was blind, she probably assumed he was trying to find some way to bullshit his way out of this, so he flipped to the end up the book, searching for a place to pick up. “And so you see, the ancient dragon language is, indeed, myth no more.” Karkat paused, glancing up for a quick second to steal a glance at Terezi’s face. He was careful to read at a quick pace, so he wouldn’t sound like a bumbling idiot who had to sound out their words carefully before they spoke. There was one thing he was decent at, and it was reading—and she wasn’t going to talk shit on that again. “It existed,” he continued, “But better yet, it still exists, and probably will until the end of time, thanks to the ancient Nords and their construction of these many ‘word walls.’

"But don’t take my word for it. For the walls are there for the discovering, in Skyrim’s dangerous, secret places. They serve as a bridge between the realm of the ancient Nords, and our own. The dragons may never return to our world, but now we can return to theirs. And someday, someday, we may even unlock the strange, unknown power hidden in their words.” Closing the book, Karkat looked up at Terezi again, cocking an eyebrow at her in a small show of pride. “So, did I pass your test?”

It was almost embarrassing how much she had wanted him to screw up, because then she had a reason to finally cement the thoughts she’d been circling—but instead she faltered, attention on nothing but Karkat as he read. Even if she knew the words, it had been so long since she’d heard them, and it was if they greeted her like an old friend. For the moment, she could ignore just who was reading it, and pretend she was back in Solitude, stumbling over the tricky words and pining for her mother’s attention, begging for her to read it aloud instead. Still, it was stupid to get nostalgic, and Terezi managed to wipe off the smile that was slowly growing onto her features. It would be troublesome to outright admit she was impressed—and almost tempted to threaten to make him read a whole library to her instead of reciting criminal knowledge. “Certainly easier than the Thieves Guild, I would imagine,” she settled on instead, making sure the last traces of any appreciation were gone.

Karkat shrugged, opening the book up again to glance down the first page before he decided to answer her. “Nah, the test to get into the Thieves Guild wasn’t hard, either. People in Riften grow up knowing how to steal like they know their own names.” Probably not the reply she wanted, but he wasn’t exactly here to please her—aside from the fact that if he didn’t please her she’d probably murder him.

“Do I get my book back?”

Karkat frowned, flipping through the remaining pages that he hadn’t been able to read yet. “Can I hold onto it for a bit? Just until I finish reading it? It’ll only be a few minutes.” The rest of the book, contrary to Terezi’s previous comments, was quite intriguing to him, especially the bits about transcribing the language. If he could learn how to do that, then he could literally piece together shouts, couldn’t he? And learn what they would do without having to be Terezi’s test dummy for all of them. But the language seemed a bit complicated for him—syllables in the place of letters was a confusing concept for him, and he could see how she had gotten her transcriptions, but he doubted he’d ever manage to do them himself. Still, the process was interesting, as well as learning more about shouts, now that he was forcibly travelling with the Dragonborn and all.

Passing the book back to her once he’d completed it, Karkat let himself have a moment to take pride in his accomplishments thus far. She’d laughed and joked with him, and his narration of what he could only guess was her favorite story had brought about the most sincere and also least threatening smile he’d seen yet on her face—and even if he still wanted out as soon as he could, he felt he was veering a little closer towards not getting murdered when he outlived his usefulness. Which meant she would need a distraction, and aimlessly wandering from Riften didn’t seem like a very solid one. Dragonborns were supposed to follow a protocol though, he was pretty sure of that, and if he could just nudge her in the right direction, he would bet his whole coin purse that she’d get swept up in the justice of it all, or something along those lines, and soon enough, she’d forget her foolhardy mission to destroy the Thieves Guild all together.

“You know,” Karkat started, pressing his fingers to the meat again for a moment before determining that it was now officially edible. “You should probably head for Ivarstead—it’s not far from Riften but it’s right next to High Hrothgar, where the Greybeards live.” He started to chew the piece of meat—he hadn’t felt hungry before, but now that he was actually eating, he couldn’t remember the last time he’d eaten. “Because,” he continued, swallowing down what he still had in his mouth before he spoke more, “They basically know everything there is to know about the Voice, supposedly, at least. Just kind of makes sense that that’s where the Dragonborn should go, right?”

"I know who the Greybeards are! Are you seriously giving me a lesson on the one thing I know better than my own name?"

"Look, I don’t know what you do and don’t know," Karkat grumbled at her, brushing off her hostility and taking another slice of goat meat. "Figured it’d make more sense just to tell you the whole thing in one sitting instead of being like, let’s go find the Greybeards, who are the Greybeards? They’re these weird guys who live on High Hrothgar. Why should we go see them? They know about Shouts! See, wasn’t what I said much more concise?" Taking another bite of his food, he paused for a moment. "To be fair, I guess I should have figured you knew, what with the book and all—memorized every line of it."

"Here, I’ll help you out for next time—I read everything I could on dragons, especially the Greybeards, in the end the college ran out of books on them and I had to go re-read the ones I already had. So yeah, your assumption would have been a lot better," Terezi corrected him, although she couldn’t really argue on his logic—not that admitting to Karkat that ‘hey, actually that made a lot of sense and I should now apologize for taking such a tone with you’ was a thing she was ever going to do, any time soon.

"Okay," Karkat raised his hands defensively at her still-snarky tone, figured it was a fool’s errand to keep arguing with her about dragons. "I’ll remember for the future: you know literally everything there is to know about dragons, every book, every story, every song—you’ve left no stones unturned, you’re the dragon expert." He frowned, smoothing his hair absently. "Why is that, anyway? Why the fascination with dragons?" He supposed it was too much to hope that her apparently infatuation with dragons could be put to some use—that perhaps, she might know why they were back now, or how to get rid of them again, but maybe she would at least know enough to take care of them temporarily. That was, if he could ever get her to willingly raise a weapon to a dragon in the first place.

Terezi considered Karkat’s question for a while, unsure if he’d asked with the intention of a serious answer, or just as a semi-sarcastic response to her. At least he’d accepted her position as Dragon sage. “Everyone has to have an interest in something,” she shrugged, considering answering him despite her predisposition to ignore him. It wasn’t often that people showed curiosity in her, but she supposed it wasn’t often that she had the opportunity or safety to talk about herself at lengths. “Don’t you just think there’s more than… this? Dragons are the only tangible proof of that. We’re all rotting pieces of flesh, but we still think we’re the smartest piece of meat to walk on this ground. We only accept the reality that any fool could claim: it’s masqueraded with knowledge by ignorance,” Terezi almost spat, uncaring how clear her disdain showed. She hadn’t spoke of her own reasoning since she’d met Dave, but somehow it helped clarify them—bring dedication to her cause despite her situation. “But I won’t die a fool,” she stated, eyes flickering to Karkat as if to stare him out. She still had her doubts about his intentions with the offer of Ivarstead, but at least she was aware of them enough not to fall into some kind of trap—and he needed to know that.

Her answer wasn’t what Karkat had expected, that was for sure, although to be fair, he didn’t know what exactly he had expected—but certainly not that. Perhaps his previous idea of her running around as a warrior of justice was a little off-base, perhaps she didn’t have compassion in her for every non-criminal soul in the world. Whatever the case, it was clear that there was more to Terezi than meets the eye, and Karkat wasn’t entirely sure he wanted to learn about the rest. But there was little he could do about it, as it were, so he merely shrugged off her disdainful reply.

However, the more Terezi thought about it, the more she had to admit that he did have the beginning of a point. She honestly had no idea what to do next, which was usually okay—she could drift along until she met Dave, or try to contact Sollux, but options like that seemed more risky with Karkat involved. She didn’t exactly want him knowing the people she was closest to, and his personality would probably clash with theirs anyway. It was time to finally make a decision, and it seemed like Karkat’s was the one that, unfortunately, made the most amount of sense. "Okay," she finally spoke again, finalizing her decision with another slither of half-cooked goat. “I’d probably have more of a chance to find someone to work with me in Ivarstead than the random woods around Riften. They probably have couriers there too, huh?” She mused, more focused on her plan with Riften than the Greybeards. It was conflicting, because she had always had a secret admiration for them, trying to coax stories of them from whoever she came across, but at the same time… That meant accepting her fate, and accepting her fate meant getting roped into killing dragons. “The issue now is what we do. I mean we could just finish eating and head there, because we already agreed neither of us are sleeping. At least in Ivarstead I can tie you up somewhere; sleeping with the horses seems perfect for you,” she joked again, wearily shaking her head at herself. That stopped after tonight, or after whenever they next got some rest—the latter seemed to be coming soon.

The idea of being tied up with the horses did not sound too appealing to him, and as much as he’d like to think she was only messing with him, assuming she was joking did not seem like the best policy to use with Terezi. “I’d rather stay here,” he replied, cutting another slice of the meat for himself. “Or we could go back to the Bee and Bard and you can just tie me up there—I’m pretty upset with that dragon for interrupting our romantic evening, and I’m not really into adding horses to the mix.” But surely Terezi wasn’t offering him a choice; he was pretty sure now that he’d opened his mouth, they were going to Ivarstead, even though it was the middle of the night and they were near the thief capital of Skyrim—but he supposed sleeping near the thief capital of Skyrim would have been equally as dangerous, if not more, what with the not being conscious thing. Sighing, Karkat gathered a bit more of the meat for the road, hesitating until Terezi offered some cloth, and he wrapped it up to take along—who knew the next time Terezi would offer to stop and eat anyway. Once he’d gathered some salvageable meat, he started to put out the fire, kicking dirt and spreading the wood apart until it died out, not bothering himself overly with the embers once there was nothing they could spread to. “So, let’s go to Ivarstead. Nothing else to do here, right?”

At least he was complying with her wishes, although had they actually been hers in the first place? Terezi frowned for a moment, unsure if Karkat had offered Ivarstead out of general talk and knowledge, or for more sinister reasons. Regardless, she didn’t have a better idea, and at least she could pick up some more supplies if they went to Ivarstead. She’d just have to keep a better eye on him. “Exactly,” she agreed, finally standing as well. “But I only know the general direction, I didn’t really have much time to pick up a map in between threatening you and finding out I’m dragonborn. So I guess I’ll have to bestow some responsibility upon you, can you actually handle that?” She raised an eyebrow, referencing back to his shamble with the fire.

Narrowing his eyes at her criticism, Karkat packed the meat away and tried to figure out where exactly they were, and how far they’d traveled from Riften. It was difficult to determine in the dark, but he thought he had a good enough idea—and a back-up route, just in case. “Well, lucky for you, I know the area. I can’t see you doing too well with a map anyway. But we should be… halfway to Shor’s Stone by now,” he commented, trying to spot even a trace of Fort Greenwall in the distance, but it was no good through the trees and the darkness. “If that’s the case, it should pretty much be a straight trip west. If we’re not as far as I thought, that’s fine too. West’ll take us to the river, and we can follow the river northwest to Ivarstead. Either way, I can get us there no problem.” To be honest, he was surprised she trusted him with the task—he could easily lead her to the fort itself to have her distracted with bandits, or Autumnshade Clearing and let the Spriggans have a go at her, but he was sure if she survived, he wouldn’t. And maybe she knew that too. Some mess he’d gotten himself into, but he’d be out of it soon enough.

With that, Terezi relaxed again slightly—or as relaxed as she could become with a task and a prisoner. There wasn’t much more point in expanding on her views, and it wasn’t as if Karkat was worth wasting her philosophy on. His plan at least seemed to correlate with the small amount of knowledge she had for the area, although the idea of a river at night wasn’t too enticing. If push came to shove, she could literally do both and easily get rid of Karkat—that was somewhat of a positive. “Looks like you’re not totally useless,” Terezi nodded, ignoring his comment about how well she could read a map. She’d made strong insinuations that both states of vision could be applicable to herself, and it was safer to see which side Karkat ended up picking. “So West it is.”


	6. autumnshade clearing i

Karkat was still surprised Terezi trusted him to lead her to Ivarstead, and the idea of her being blind seemed to be holding a bit of water; so he tested her, deliberately leading her close to trees and stepping silently over their roots to see if she could do the same—most times she would barely nick it with her foot and then step over it like no problem, but surely if she was a blind traveler, she would have some means of getting through the forest on her own. Frustrated and distracted with still being in the dark about Terezi’s abilities, Karkat didn’t realize he’d accidentally led them into Autumnshade Clearing until they were already half-way through it, and he froze, searching the immediate area nervously for Spriggans. There didn’t seem to be any around, but he did notice what looked like the glow of a fire, not too far off, and he wondered if someone would be foolish enough to camp in Autumnshade Clearing. Before he could put too much thought into it, though, the sound of a growl startled him--a very specific kind of growl, and his hands immediately flew to his daggers. “I think there’s a troll nearby,” he whispered, glancing over his shoulder to make sure the Dragonborn was still with him. “Fuck, this is not what I wanted to run into tonight.”

"I’m glad you’re more alarmed over a troll than a dragon," Terezi huffed with mixed laughter and annoyance. Karkat’s priorities were a mystery to her, but at least his concern was a off-placed—a troll would certainly be easier with two of them. Or at least it should have been. "So are the daggers actually used for fighting or am I going to have to cover your sorry ass?" She grinned, glad at a chance to rib him again—but also to finally feel more confident after a slightly nervous trek of near-misses with stumbling and falling. Terezi moved without a response, happy enough to use Karkat as distracting bait. She was always torn between swords, but keeping distance between herself and the troll would be nice—so Pyralspite would have to be used. There was no need to bother with too much stealth, they’d be spotted soon enough and agility was often more useful than surprise. Or so she’d thought, because before she’d even managed to get a hit on the troll there was another enemy—human? The blurred figure seemed to be shouting something in her tongue, and it startled Terezi enough to throw off the balance between her shoulders and the blade, tipping backwards and away from the troll. It was then that she noticed the lack of hostility from the troll, but also the voice that was calling out to them. She’d heard it somewhere before… but maybe lower? No—higher, Terezi decided, slowly lowering her weapon at the command to do so. It was then that she realized why it sounded so strange: she was used to such a voice being of a higher pitch, and a lower volume.

"Tavros?" She called, still hesitant but the complacency of the troll should have been enough confirmation.

"Terezi?" He called back, and the moment of hesitation was all but a silent ‘uh’ to her. They seemed to stand at an awkward standstill for a moment, only interrupted by the presence of their respective companions.

"What an awkward reconciliation," Tavros offered first, prompting Terezi to move closer to his outstretched hand. "Uh, not that I’m saying that it’s awkward for any reasons to do with our friendship, but, more to say that, it’s slightly awkward that you tried to kill my friend. And by, friend, I mean, the troll, that is standing next to me. Or slightly away from me, but the intended purpose is that… he’s not an enemy."

Terezi couldn’t help but grin as he started speaking, a feeling of nostalgia towards their childhood. She moved to shake his hand back, but thought better of it—instead sheathing her blade and moving to hug him. “He looked like an enemy to me!” She cheerfully retorted, almost forgetting about Karkat completely. “But obviously he isn’t, so I have to apologize. I guess there’s no hard feelings, right?” She offered to the troll, who didn’t seem to have an opinion either way.”Great! Well, wow.” Terezi turned her attention back to Tavros, who seemed to be anxious about something. "Oh… This is Karkat," she explained, breaking the embrace and turning to said Dunmer with a look of contempt. "Karkat, this is Tavros Nitram."

The sudden turn of events from fighting a troll with just his tiny daggers, to suddenly reuniting with some long lost companion of Terezi’s while the troll stood idly nearby, breathing loud enough to deafen someone, was so strange on it’s own that it nearly made Karkat’s head spin, and he took a slow, long moment to resheath his daggers, eyes darting from the troll to the bosmer repeatedly, still not eager to trust either one. He literally could not believe tonight—first Terezi, then a goddamn dragon, and now a tame troll with a crippled master? The Thieves Guild was not going to believe this story, assuming he ever made it back to them, that was. He hadn’t paid a whole lot of attention to their conversation, only tuning in for the introduction and losing focus entirely when the Bosmer stammered on for a full minute, correcting minute details of his previous statement. He didn’t take his eyes off the troll for any serious lengths of time, his fingers light on the hilt of his dagger just in case it was less tame than they’d made it out to be, but he couldn’t tune them out once he heard his name, red eyes narrowing to near slits at the scornful manner with which Terezi introduced him.

His mouth was already opened, ready to complain about either Terezi or the troll, he hadn’t decided yet, when his brain caught up with his ears, and the name of the Bosmer suddenly clicked. “Tavros Nitram?” he asked, glancing towards the troll again with sudden understanding. “You’re Tavros Nitram?” He looked to Terezi again, looking for some further confirmation, or at the very least, some sort of reason why she was acquainted with some form of celebrity before he looked back towards the bosmer, sighing in slightly contained awe. “Wow, I didn’t expect to meet you. Especially through her,” he looked towards her again, taking careful attention to say the word with just as much scorn as she’d said his name. “I have to say, I didn’t really believe you could tame a troll, I thought that was just… writing.” He glanced to the troll again, cracking a slight smile. “But I am very glad it wasn’t.”

Of all the things Terezi was expecting, Karkat knowing Tavros was far down on her list. Her attention peaked as he spoke, even disregarding his rudeness to assess what was happening. Was he excited? Terezi tried not to pull a face at the idea, once again annoyed at the way Karkat could keep proving himself to be an actual person instead of a thing to be hated and despised without much thought. At least she knew with confirmation that he seemed to read beyond what he needed to—another fact that made her jaw stiff with annoyance. She tried to gauge Tavros’ reaction, but the man was just as bashful as she’d expected and it was going to be for the interest of everyone if she just cut across his stumbling. "So you got pretty famous in the literacy circle—huh?" Terezi noted, a dull twinge rising up in her stomach at the fact she couldn’t know that, because she couldn’t read the achievements of her childhood friend.

"I wouldn’t say I got famous as such," Tavros offered, still reeling a bit from his apparent recognition. "Maybe infamous? No one really likes someone who uh, treats beasts as if they aren’t slaughter material. Or I guess, not a lot of people really believe I did it," he smiled in Karkat’s direction, but without sarcasm or malice. "Which is okay. I wouldn’t really believe me either but… It doesn’t really help these guys out." He paused to check back on his friend, who seemed anxious about their new guests—but not hostile. "See they’re mild if you treat them right. So at first they come across as scary and maybe a little ugly—not that I think they are ugly because uh, well actually that was the point I was making in the first place—but once you get to know them they’re loyal and nice company. Kind of like Terezi," he laughed to her new friend, who was probably his new friend by default. If that wasn’t overstepping boundaries. Which maybe it was because Terezi didn’t seem too happy and her friend didn’t seem any better… "Sorry. That was a joke: it wasn’t a good one." 

Terezi pursed her lips into a smile, slightly more annoyed by the fact that it made her look like some kind of tame-able puppy—which was not the impression she wanted Karkat to gain from Tavros. Shifting a little awkwardly, Tavros tried to continue on. “See they’re actually really, uh, smart too. They can—they uh, they open doors and go inside. Go inside buildings, I mean. They also—I mean not usually but—sometimes—like this troll—he knows how to pick things up without breaking them,” Tavros could feel the conversation slipping away with his nerves, unsure if Karkat had even cared in the first place, even though Tavros liked to think he had been sincere. “You probably aren’t really that interested in this,” he muttered, unsure what Rufio would to do redeem the situation. “Uh, maybe we should… talk about something else, uhm. So how… did you two meet? You don’t really seem Terezi’s type,” he joked again, internally cringing.

Karkat listened attentively to Tavros stumble around explaining trolls, cracking a slight smile at Tavros’ joke, but only once he saw it riled Terezi. Still, the information the Bosmer was sharing was interesting, even if knowing they could open doors wasn’t a comforting thought. Admittedly, it was a good thing Tavros wrote his stories, rather than just told them. In writing, he managed to eliminate all the excess blabber that his mouth seemed unable to, but as long as he was still learning, Karkat supposed he couldn’t complain too much. It could come in handy to know at some point, as it were. The subject change surprised him, eyes flitting towards Terezi at the question before he shrugged, looking back to the bosmer as he tried to come up with a story that didn’t involve him being taken prisoner. “Just the usual story, boy meets girl, boy falls head over heels for girl—even a girl like her. We met in Riften and I mean, obviously we wanted to get hitched right then and there but I’m a pretty religious guy, I wanted to walk the 7000 steps and meditate before I make any serious life decisions. But, Terezi doesn’t like to let me out of her sight, so she’s coming with me. She’s totally crazy about me, you know?” he lowered his voice for that part—for dramatic effect, of course, not because he was afraid of what Terezi was going to do to him. “She’s so eager that we can’t even stop for camp,” he complained, rolling his eyes. “So, Tavros, do you know if we’re headed the right way? Ivarstead’s right along this way, right? Just keep walking and all?”

Terezi’s eyes narrowed at Karkat’s response to Tavros’ question. She’d been curious to see what he’d answer with, but she hadn’t really expected that. In Riften it had been one thing, but she wasn’t going to let him convince her childhood friend of it. Her teeth gritted as he continued, at least able to find hope in the fact that Tavros would obviously see that there was no way she would ever be crazy about someone like Karkat—who seemed to underestimate how much her other senses had to compensate for her blindness. It was when Tavros began to congratulate the two that Terezi cut across again. “He’s a thief, and a terrible one at that,” she snarled, all but baring her teeth in Karkat’s direction. “Obviously that’s why I found him in Riften and the only reason I haven’t killed him yet is because I found a practical use for him—and if we aren’t in the direction of Ivarstead then that use is going to run out pretty soon.”

"Uhhh, well you’re definitely headed the right way," Tavros quickly answered, not wanting to be responsible for getting Karkat killed from replying too slowly. 

"But we can’t stop for camp yet, even if the little empress wants to." Ignoring Karkat for the moment, Terezi focused on her own issues. Discussing how her recent revelation affected her wasn’t the kind of conversation she wanted with Karkat—but Tavros would know what to do and say. "If I told you I thought I was Dragonborn, how believable do you think it would be?"

There was a silence as Tavros appeared to think it over, and Terezi tried to stay impassive but it almost seemed impossible when she was suddenly nervous. “As believable as taming a troll?” He offered, and Terezi broke into a relieved grin. She started to recount the nights events to him, even throwing in how terrible Karkat’s help had been to further drive in the reinforcement that he was not above her—ever. She left Karkat to his own sensible devices as she confided her immediate worries to Tavros, already knowing that her priorities would be tested. He seemed awkward about giving his own opinion, both of them already knowing that it contradicted her own. She sighed as the discussion started to draw to a close, no real answers provided to her. "Is that why you’re headed to Ivarstead?"

"His idea," Terezi shrugged, begrudgingly bringing Karkat back into the conversation.

Despite taking insult to Terezi’s brash honesty and probably unnecessary criticism, Karkat didn’t let it show, keeping his expression the same glower it had been probably since Terezi had captured him. Tavros’ assurance that they were going the right way was good, but only really necessary for reassuring Terezi not kill him, at this point. He’d hoped mentioning Ivarstead and his captor’s unwillingness to even camp for the night would get them moving again, but obviously Terezi had a lot of catching up to do with the Bosmer—catching up that Karkat clearly wasn’t invited to, and he sighed, leaning idly against a nearby tree while they spoke. It might have been a bit of a headache to listen to Tavros walk in circles around the point he was trying to make, but he didn’t trust Terezi enough to politely ignore her conversation, though he did his best not to look like he was listening in.

When Ivarstead came up again, Karkat perked up, eager to move on, but he didn’t want to jump into the conversation unless it was clear he was welcome. Or, as welcome as he was ever going to be with Terezi, at the very least. However, it seemed like he was sort of being addressed, and he glanced towards them, acting as if he’d heard them mention him out of the blue, and not like he’d been listening for his name the entire time. “It makes sense to go there,” Karkat reminded, crossing his arms over his chest. “We both could’ve read every book in Skyrim on dragons and Dragonborns, and the Greybeards will still know more than us.” Scoffing at having to explain himself again, he pushed himself off the tree, eyes darting between the troll, Tavros, and Terezi before settling on the Redguard again. “Can we get moving now? It was nice to meet you and all,” he regarded Tavros, his sincerity likely lost through the hard edge of his voice, despite the fact that it was there, “but you’re not going to let us stay the night here? Despite the fact that he has an attack troll who’d probably rip me apart if I tried to leave—so let’s just keep moving.”

Terezi wasn’t sure if Karkat was trying to push some reverse psychology onto her, because staying overnight almost seemed tempting when she remembered the troll—but then she remembered her senses: Karkat was a Dunmer who could easily take out the troll with magic and kill Tavros and herself. It wasn’t exactly a sensible idea to stop and rest, but her line of thinking had her confused again—why exactly hadn’t Karkat used magic to free himself? Maybe he was just waiting for her to let her guard down, which meant an even stronger resolve against stopping. She wasn’t sure how long she could keep pushing without sleep, especially with the growing toll from her new position, but there was no helping it; they had to press on until she could find confirmation of his abilities, even if it put her at a disadvantage in the long run.

"He has a point," she finally relented, sighing with what was to come. Tavros tried to protest against her decision but she just shook her head, moving closer to hug him again. There was a brief nostalgia for normality as she came up against the familiar scent of forest and earth, jolting her priorities into perspective as she pulled away from him. "If you—," Terezi began, before stammering to a stop. She could feel Tavros’ watching her as she swallowed her words, teetering between continuing and leaving it. "If you see Vriska, or hear of her—and hear anything that obviously isn’t lies or stemming from me—then contact me, okay? I’m sure any courier in Skyrim will know who I am soon enough," she smiled weakly, but her attention stayed on trying to pick out the features of beef and potatoes that seemed to make up his appearance. There was an awkward pause between them, which Terezi should have expected, it wasn’t like Vriska was a topic that either of them wanted to talk about, like survivors of a wreckage.

"I’ll listen out for anything," he eventually offered, even though Terezi doubted whether he would.

Silent but attentive, Karkat listened carefully to their conversation, ignoring the fact that it was clearly of a personal matter. He remembered the name Vriska—the name she had used as her own when she’d held him captive at the Bee and Barb, while he’d politely given his real name. He didn’t know who she was to Terezi, or who Tavros even really was to her, to be honest, but she was clearly of importance. Perhaps they were old friends who’d gotten separated and when the Dragonborn wasn’t trying to destroy all criminal organizations ever, she was looking for her friend. Maybe they were more than friends, even—but that was probably just Karkat’s imagination getting carried away with him, reminding himself real life wasn’t like the novels he spent so much time with his nose buried in, and Terezi didn’t have to be on a quest to reunited with her long lost lover. Tavros’ reaction threw him a little, confused as to why one friend of Terezi would seem adverse to another friend of Terezi, but there was only so much he could gather from one exchange. 

"Okay, good," she nodded, slipping back nearer to Karkat. "Well, it was good to see you again—keep in touch regardless of her, okay?" A blind joke was almost on the tip of her tongue, but throwing them around in front of Karkat didn’t seem very wise at the moment.

"I think you’ll be too busy: maybe I’ll write a new book, on taming dragons, and you can have that instead," he smiled, and Terezi even found herself chuckling—idly wishing she could have stayed with him. "And I think," he continued, regarding Karkat. "It was good to meet you. Even if I’m not sure, if you’re a friend or enemy but, you didn’t kill my friend or… well either of them so… maybe, if you weren’t being polite, and if uh, the future is fortuitous to you—and if you’re still, not-marrying Terezi then I should probably give you a copy too. I don’t really have a discrimination policy with books—not that I do on anything really it’s just…" Tavros trailed off again, not sure how to explicitly state he wasn’t too worried about a thief without angering Terezi or making things harder for Karkat later on. "Anyway, goodbye—I guess?"

"I wasn’t being polite," Karkat confirmed, crossing his arms across his chest as if he was offended by the notion. "They’re an interesting read, and unlike anything else out there. You don’t read many stories where the author is sympathetic to what everyone considers savage beasts," he amended, glancing towards the troll that Tavros had essentially made into a house pet—or a guard dog, maybe more accurately. "And I appreciate that, but don’t worry. I’ll find a copy on my own," he smirked, glancing towards Terezi to see if his hint at theft had pushed any buttons. "It was nice to meet you, though, especially since it meant we didn’t have to fight a troll." Stepping away without bothering to shake Tavros’ hand or offer anything of that nature, Karkat moved passed Terezi, hesitating while he waited for her to follow. "See you around; maybe."

Terezi narrowed her eyes at Karkat’s comments, wondering if he thought she wouldn’t eventually grow tired of his implications. You didn’t need hands to read, she mused before perking up a little brighter at the prospect. Maybe she’d have to remind him of that next time he started getting cocky, and thinking about it further they were probably a lot of body parts that he didn’t technically need. “You know if we hadn’t met him there wouldn’t have been a troll in the first place, right?” She sighed over the two exchanging goodbyes, unsure if she was annoyed by Karkat’s low intelligence or the almost-familiar-ness with how they spoke. At least Karkat started moving to leave, and she followed with a small wave to Tavros. She was still lightly agitated by Karkat, but carrying on by letting him get to her was not going to be good in the long run. Maybe she really would have to resort to some mild violence to get his co-operation with reduced sass and saunter. She knew it would probably end up taking a while, but her main focus was on how long it would be until daylight crept back in so she could see everything clearer—especially if Karkat was going to go back through the ‘scenic’ route of as many branches and stones as he could find.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [information on tavros has been added to the character bios!](http://to-tundra.tumblr.com/bios)


	7. ivarstead i

The remainder of the journey to Ivarstead took the rest of the night and into morning, but eventually they reached the small, rocky village, and Vilemyr Inn had never looked better. Karkat’s feet ached and his eyes were heavy and he was not looking forward to climbing seven thousand steps in his current condition, but his request to stop at the inn was rudely denied, his companion insisting she couldn’t trust him to actually rest. He then decided that she must have most definitely been blind—no one who could see the bags under his eyes and the way his feet dragged would distrust that he would sleep right now, if given a bed. It seemed Terezi didn’t want to waste any time, and the citizens of the beaten down town were happy enough, albeit a bit bemused, to point them in the direction of the climb that would probably take the next couple of days. At this point, Karkat’s quest for freedom was mostly fueled by the desire to get some sleep, but he was pretty sure he wouldn’t make it very far, considering how tired he was. His options were limited to dying of exhaustion or Terezi’s blade, and exhaustion sounded a little less painful.

It was easy to find the steps after they had been pointed in the right direction, and while they headed towards them, Karkat tried to think of some way to get Terezi to take mercy on him, maybe some sort of plea that would be so pathetic that she literally couldn’t say no—but he didn’t get the chance, turning on his heel when a voice called out a loud ‘excuse me!’ just about right in his ear. It was a courier, and while Karkat usually found them a welcome sight, at the moment he was so tired that he didn’t want to deal with etiquette and manners. But the letter wasn’t for him—it was passed to Terezi before the courier dipped his head and went on his way, but Karkat didn’t miss the brief smile on Terezi’s lips as she held the letter. Surprisingly, she didn’t bother to open it, simply pocketing it, and Karkat squinted, wondering again if she really was blind and was still trying to keep it a secret. “Aren’t you gonna read that?” he asked, too tired to care if his tone wasn’t to Terezi’s liking. He was tired of guessing things about her, and if he could get even one answer out of her he could consider that a triumph.

Terezi herself could feel the beginning of exhaustion, little pinpricks of warnings that started to make thinking in sentences difficult. However, she was naturally skilled to push her stamina to its limit, and she was sure that she could make the climb before collapsing. At least if they made it to High Hrothgar then there would be people there to watch over him and make sure he didn’t leave—not that she thought he’d be going anywhere far any time soon. The arrival of the courier wasn’t so unexpected to her, and she was always pleased by what it meant. With contact from Dave, she felt even more determined to make it to the top of the steps in one go, pocketing the letter as quickly as she’d received it. It was when Karkat spoke that she thought over her decision, the paper heavy in her hand. She was sure that Dave was more than aware that she didn’t read them—seeing as she had personally told him on many occasions that she couldn’t and he was wasting good money—but he kept sending them, so she kept hoarding them. There were probably more loose bits of paper in her bag then was needed, but Dave’s correspondences had always kept her happy without the need to know what they contained. After all, the words meant nothing—he wouldn’t put anything sincere or sappy into a letter, they were mostly ramblings that she doubted even Dave could understand when he re-read them. It was the gesture itself that she read instead.

However, knowing that there was nothing personal in the letter left her hesitant to completely ignore it like she had done the rest. If Dave was a master of anything, it was of crude humor and metaphors unlike nothing she’d ever heard before—if she wanted a chance to see Karkat squirm around, then this would be it. She was also aware that Dave spoke with terrible grammar, a trait she was sure he’d picked up on purpose: but it would probably push Karkat’s reading abilities, and it wouldn’t hurt to test his intelligence a little further. "Here." She produced the letter again, all but throwing it in Karkat’s direction and hoping he was still functioning enough to catch it. "Read it aloud, it will at least make these first twenty steps bearable.

Karkat caught the letter without too much struggle, frowning between her and the letter while he toiled over what to do. Asking him to read it for her was more proof that she was likely blind—but at the same time, she hadn’t even trusted him with her name a few hours ago, and now she was letting him read a personal letter? It was true that she’d given him the book to read, a book that she’d memorized cover to cover, and there was some level of sharing her personal things with him there, but it had also only been a test, and worst case scenario, he found out she had a lot of sympathy for murderous beasts. The letter could have been something serious; it could have been from family, it could have been about a death, or it could have been from her long lost friend/potential lover, or news of her, or something. There were thousands of possibilities, but the idea that she was willing to let him read something personal for the sake of amusing them on the climb seemed a bit far-fetched.

"Maybe I’m too tired to read," he murmured, fingers picking off the seal regardless of his words. "Or, maybe my voice is tired from having to complain at you all night, and I’ll just read it to myself. It doesn’t matter, right? You can just read it later." Shrugging, Karkat unfolded the paper, eyes skimming the top lines, and narrowing in confusion as he read over the word ‘homofantasies,’ unsure whether or not he even wanted to read the letter out loud anymore. Still, he wasn’t going to let Terezi know that the contents of the letter seemed to be weird bullshit—"It’s pretty interesting though; how long are you planning to let it sit before you take the time to read it?"

She tried not to smile as he said it was interesting, thoughts already settled around fonder memories of Dave. Knowing that the contents would only be interesting if you had some deep psychological trauma left her sure that Karkat was bluffing. Then again, maybe he really did enjoy reading everything no matter how little it made sense. “But why do you think I’m letting you read it? Obviously I know what’s in it; I want to know how varied your lexus is and how well you can read away from conventional genres of books. Do I have to explain every simple task to you?” Terezi sighed, once again left regretting her decision. "I thought you liked reading anyway? If you can’t carry out a simple instruction of something that comes oh so naturally to you, then what am I keeping you around for again?" She asked him, hand casually slipping to her iron sword.

"I do like reading, that’s why I’m reading it. I just don’t like reading out loud so much." He shrugged again, red eyes flitting back down to the letter. "And to be honest, I’m not actually sure why you’re keeping me around for; on one hand, you promised you’d let me live if I told you what you wanted, and I guess technically I’m still alive, and maybe the fine print was I had to be your slave for the rest of forever. But I’m no better at fighting than you are, as far as you can tell, you said yourself I’m a shitty thief so keeping me around to, I don’t know, pick locks or something doesn’t seem very logical. The only skill of mine you seem to be utilizing is my reading, and for some reason you think that just because this letter looks like it was written by the… deformed baby of, maybe an orc and a dog, I won’t be able to read it? You know I can read, and there’s no reason a letter written by an idiot would be more challenging than a letter written by an intelligent human who’s made a career out of writing. It’s bullshit, and we both know it." Sighing, Karkat looked down at the letter again, fingers idly smoothing out the creases in the letter from being folded up. “But I’ll take pity on you and summarize—it’s too full of shit to read out, and I might be able to read but I don’t have the patience for this. Long story short, your buddy TG is madly in love with John, Son of Balgruuf the Greater, and he wants to invite you to the wedding, but he’s afraid you’ll walk in to things like, I don’t know, probably like a blind moron or something. Personally, I think his worries are a little ill-placed, I think you’d do fine at the wedding without bumping into things despite the blindness. Oh, and he doesn’t want to have John’s babies yet, because he needs to keep his figure, and also he thinks you’ll eat the babies. Satisfied?”

Terezi took a moment to let his backchat set in, insults about Dave bristling up her spine until she flashed hot with anger. She grabbed the front of Karkat's clothes before slamming him against the mountain—uncaring if she broke his spine in the process. She’d never really risen to bait before, but she didn’t like the snide implications he made about Dave, and she certainly didn’t like how high and mighty he was acting about her sight. “Is there nothing you value about your life? Or did your parents just forget to teach you respect before they conveniently abandoned such a worthless child?” She hissed, sword unsheathing as she pressed it against his throat. “I didn’t kill you because I was distracted, and I liked that you could read: do you know how many men I’ve killed without hesitation—how lucky you are that you scraped by because I had an error of judgement and almost saw you as a person.” At person, she pressed the blade harder against him, enough to know that she was cutting through his skin. She licked her lips slightly as she caught the smell of snowberries which had long since replaced the copper of blood.

Being shoved against the wall of a trench was enough to knock some sense back into Karkat—it had all been fun and games and banter once he’d gotten cocky. She hadn’t killed him yet, and it made him believe that she wouldn’t in the future, either, which had apparently been quite the mistake on his part. He couldn’t move to draw his dagger—she would feel him shift and finish the job before he had a chance to retaliate. A harsh breath hissed through his teeth at the comment on his parents, hitting a bit of a nerve that he didn’t want her to know she’d hit—and frankly, that he’d rather pretend she hadn’t hit at all. He swallowed nervously, regretting the action when it only managed to press the blade further against his skin, and he could feel his blood drip hot, contrasting the icy air around them. She pressed harder, and Karkat tried to inch further into the wall behind him—but predictably, the stone didn’t give, and neither did Terezi’s blade, and he wished he wasn’t such a mouthy idiot, but he wouldn’t have the chance to change his ways; he was about 110% sure Terezi wasn’t going to drop her blade in exchange for information this time.

"Do I still seem like I deserve to be patronized when I’m about to slit your throat? Do you want to open your mouth to be as condescending as possible about my sight again? You have time, because I can’t work out if I’m going to let you slowly bleed out or if I’m going to choke you. Maybe I’ll see how many disabilities I can give you before you start begging me to kill you," Terezi leered, pushing the sword deeper again. Her force against him shifted as there was a dull thud above them, which quickly started to gain in vibrations and loudness. "Shit," she breathed, a dropped panic that ended up rising in intonation as she hit the last syllable. She drew her sword away from Karkat, uncaring what happened to him—instead tensing at the growing snorting noises, and the inevitable drop of a frost troll.

Karkat could almost breathe again as the pressure of the Terezi’s blade subsided, until he saw why—and suddenly Tavros’ tamed troll looked like a housepet in comparison to the behemoth of the frost troll. He’d read books on them before, but managed to stay far enough away from their climates that he’d never encountered one. He was grateful for his thirst for literature now, being able to recall not only that they were weak against fire, but also that they could regenerate over time—fighting one was incredibly difficult without speed, and he didn’t think he’d ever have to test his odds. He considered running, leaving Terezi to deal with it or to die trying; it wasn’t like she’d had any pity for him a moment ago, but the idea of leaving her to die left a bad taste in his mouth. Even if he didn’t like her, she was the Dragonborn, and the only one in centuries, too. According to legend, the fate of all of Skyrim was on her, and if he left her to die on a mountain then, he was essentially responsible for dooming his whole country. Hissing at his own twisted, frustrating logic, Karkat dropped to a crouch and moved, pulling out his daggers and lunging to swipe at the troll’s tendons—a crippled troll was much easier to beat than one at full speed, but it wouldn’t stay down for long. Once he’d gotten close enough to knock it down, he darted away again quickly, a bit closer to Terezi but still out of range of her sword. "Do you—" he bit his lip, his pride stopping his tongue for the moment, but the troll would be back on his feet soon, and fighting the beast with close-range weapons wasn’t something he wanted to keep up. "Do you know any fire spells? We’d finish it in no time with fire," he managed, jaw tensing as he waited for her to inevitably ask why he wasn’t using fire magic, if that was the case. But maybe the troll was more urgent, and she would wait for it to be dead to bother him with it—and even better, maybe she’d just kill him after and he wouldn’t even had to go into it. Not very likely though—he seriously doubted she’d willingly spare him humiliation before she finished slitting his throat. That didn’t seem her style.

Terezi had moved back as he’d moved forwards, unsure of his intentions and needing to switch over to Pyralspite—there was no way she was getting within a foot of the troll. She could barely see the thing, teeth gritting as she tried to focus on the cement of his chest rather than letting it blend into the snow. It was only when Karkat re-joined her that she realized she still didn’t have a game plan, and even a contingency plan was out of reach. "Fire magic?" She laughed incredulously at his direction. "Do I look like I’m Dunmer to you? Redguard. Stamina. Sword!" Terezi shouted at him, wondering if he needed a biology lesson on top of everything she’d already had to explain to him. "You’re so useless it’s unreal," she almost shrieked from frustration, only keeping her voice down low enough that it wouldn’t wind up the troll any further—at least as subdued as she could get it with its movement restricted. Ignoring Karkat in an attempt to think of something that was actually intelligent, Terezi tried to quickly evaluate the situation. She couldn’t strike where it was hard, even Pyralspite would have a tough job getting through. She could only strike from the front, unable to turn its body over. The stomach seemed a safe option, but getting close to those hands was not what she wanted to do. She gripped her sword in frustration, unsure if there even was a solution she could win with. It was only when she noticed a blur of black against white that she realized how best to approach the situation. "You deal with the fire magic," she shouted at Karkat before moving, somehow doubting he actually would do anything. She tried to carefully navigate around the troll, which was too fiddly and annoying when it was almost as white as the snow. She just focused on the black dots, hoping that she wouldn’t be killed in the process. The noise was awful, and her head rang harder from the troll than it did her heartbeat: but she pushed on, hands tightening around Pyralspite as she tried to position herself close enough without being within range of its mouth. There was no way she could be precise, so she gave up—instead lunging from behind and cringing as her sword made contact. She had to let go as soon as the troll started moving, only able to pray that her sword didn’t fly off and end up lost forever. Her footing was unsteady as she hit the ground again, but at least Terezi was alive: all it took now was waiting.

Trying to cover Terezi’s back when she moved in to stab the troll had probably not been Karkat’s best idea—his daggers were good for quick swipes but not protection, and once she’d jabbed at the troll, the thrashing wasn’t something he could defend himself against, taking a hit to the shoulder and stumbling back. Its claws had drawn some blood as well, but it felt more like a bruise than anything else, and Karkat didn’t trouble himself with it, focusing instead on locating Terezi; she seemed to have scrambled away from the troll, though, and by the time it stopped moving it was clear she was uninjured, which was good for Skyrim but probably not that great for him. Without the troll to force them to align, he was pretty sure they would be enemies again, and he hadn’t forgotten the feel of her blade against his throat.

She grimaced as it thrashed, unsure how well she liked hemorrhaging trolls to death if they were going to flail around enough to still do damage. Still, it wasn’t as if it could move too far thanks to Karkat’s admittedly fast thinking—but it had been a close escape. It finally stopped moving, which Terezi took as an indication of his death. Not wanting to be under-cautious, she slid her iron sword into the top of its scalp, confirming the troll’s death when nothing seemed to happen. Removing Pyralspite again with another grimace, she tried to wipe her weapon off as best she could on the troll’s fur. She put her weapon away again and then grabbed her second one, simply looking down at the troll for a few moments as the adrenaline fluctuated. It was only when she drew her vision back up that she could pick out Karkat against the snow, her lip curling with annoyance. “What is actually wrong with you?”

"Look," he started, trying to find a place to start to explain. "I know better than to assume that because you’re a Redguard, you don’t know magic. Some races are more inclined for it than others, sure, but, it’s not impossible. For you," he amended, running his tongue over his lips. “Anyway, it’s dead, so…" Shrugged, he slid his left dagger back into its sheath—that shoulder was too banged up for him to fight with anyway, but he didn’t trust her enough not to attack him. He didn’t expect he’d be able to defend himself against her with one dagger though, and frankly he wasn’t sure where they stood at the moment. He doubted she would recognize him staying and fighting with her as him trying to protect her—likely she would assume he didn’t think he’d survive running away, and had fought because it was the only thing to do. "Can we just get moving? Or am I still—you know."

"Then what? You’re saying I don’t know better than to assume that because you’re a Dunmer, you know how to use magic? And I know magic but I’m not a natural with it like I am a blade. I would have burnt the both of us instead," she sighed, unsure why she was even explaining this to him. Redguards were usually pretty good at destruction magic, but Terezi hadn’t been too thrilled with the prospect of it ever since her fight with Vriska. It probably would have made the troll easier, but she wasn’t going to risk killing herself when she knew how to fight in other ways—even if it had made the situation harder. Speaking of making the situation harder… "So what’s your excuse? Did you hope that I’d get killed if you just left it? Then you could have finished it off once I was done for?" Terezi tightened her face in distrust, able to analyze what had just happened now that they were out of the danger. "I know you can use fire magic, so why tip me off about trolls being weak to it, only not to use it?" She frowned, failing to add up the logic together. "Even if I did survive—which I have—I’d quickly put two and two together—which I have—and end up killing you—which I’m probably going to."

Karkat let out a frustrated groan, exhausted with dealing with Terezi’s adamant perspective. “You’re not an idiot, but you let yourself get blinded by your own pride real easy, you know,” he hissed, forgetting his earlier resolution to watch his tongue now that there was no blade pressed to his neck. “If I wanted that troll to kill you, I would have fucking left you to it. And then even if it hadn’t killed you, it wouldn’t have been my problem, because I would have gotten as far from your ridiculous war path as I could, and then I wouldn’t have to fucking deal with your insanity anymore—but where am I? What did I do? I mean, I get that you don’t trust me—I don’t like you, but you’re the Dragonborn. Unlike some people, I’m not so caught up in petty personal drama that I’d leave the most important person in Skyrim to die.”

Terezi wasn’t sure if she was supposed to take Karkat’s backhanded compliment or not, instead carefully listening and trying to ignore the second impulse to slit his throat. She supposed it made sense that it would have been easier for him to leave her—but it was also obvious that he wasn’t in any state to go anywhere. She didn’t trust him, but she did trust in logic and he was starting to have solid reasoning. It didn’t help that she was tired too, unable to pull apart everything as much as she wanted to. She didn’t really think she was the most important person in Skyrim either, but Karkat’s reasoning worked there at least. Her attention also fell to his injuries, trying to weigh everything up. He looked like shit, sounded like shit and probably felt like shit too. She was probably accrediting him to a lot more cunning than he was actually capable of. 

Looking to the corpse of the troll again, he exhaled loudly, lip curling into a bitter smirk. “I can’t do magic. Not fire magic, or any destruction magic, or restoration, or, anything. I told you they were weak against it because I was trying to help and I can’t do it on my own—there’s nothing strategic to telling you what to do and not doing it myself, I attacked the troll, and I got hurt worse than you—I would have probably died if you weren’t here, so there’s even less point in letting it kill you, ignoring the fact that I was trying to help you fight it. Not that you care but, being a thief doesn’t make me entirely selfish, and I don’t value my life over everyone in Skyrim. Get it? There’s no sneaky game here—I’m not trying to kill you, or to get you killed, okay? Now,” he huffed, sliding the right dagger back into its sheath as well. “If you’re going to kill me, then get it over with—all I want to do right now is to take a goddamn nap. And if not, can we get back to climbing the steps or what?”

Her decision seemed to resolve to one outcome as he told her he couldn’t do magic, Terezi’s eyebrows furrowing. She wasn’t sure how rare it was for Dunmer not to be able to do magic, but the idea didn’t seem right to her. Even if Terezi was terrible with magic, she could still do it—just not very well. She’d almost believed him before, but now she was suspicious again. She kept her sword loosely by her side, but didn’t move to use it. “If you can’t do magic then how did you light the fire?”

Tensed and ready to be thrown into the wall again, Karkat watched Terezi carefully, each expression that crossed her face, how her muscles—particularly the ones in her sword arm moved, trying to gauge whether or not she would believe him, whether or not he’d manage to survive a little longer of the dragonborn’s wrath, but as far as he could tell from her face, she seemed to be growing calmer—maybe he would last another day yet. He didn’t miss her face change back to suspicion, though he wasn’t sure why, and her question only bewildered him further. How did he light what fire? It took him a moment, mind moving slower from the exhaustion that was like honey in his brain, but he connected her meaning, scoffing at what seemed a foolish question. “The same way anyone else does—wood and leaves and friction. You didn’t see me light it but if I could do fire magic I’d think I would have just used fuel logs and set them on fire… To be fair, I don’t know how fire magic even works for building fires but I assure you, I did it the old fashioned way, like the Nords do. I guess, plus some alchemy. I can’t do magic—I’m not so adamant about it that I wouldn’t, like, heal my own wounds? And if you check my bag, it’s full of alchemy components too, because I have to make potions to suffice… I mean I don’t know how I can prove that I can’t do magic anymore than I have, I don’t know how you expect me to make you believe me, but I wouldn’t make something like this up. A dunmer that can’t do magic… the fuck is the point of that? No self-respecting dunmer would lie about that.”

Like the Nords do, she scoffed, but even Terezi had to admit that everything was falling into place now. No one would ever admit to not being able to do magic—her thoughts flickering back to Sollux and his pride and abilities. It was probably pretty depressing to not be able to do what everyone else in your race could, and then she thought to Rose—annoying and dreadful Rose. Even Terezi couldn’t help but pity her regardless of how much she didn’t like her. She wondered if maybe she and Karkat weren’t too different in some respects. Maybe she hadn’t contradicted her race like Karkat had—but she had a disability and she’d had to adapt or die. Didn’t Karkat basically have a disability too? Wasn’t his use of alchemy just another form of adapting? Her head hurt from frustration, unsure where her own morals were anymore. Whatever the case was, she wasn’t going to act when her judgement was cloudy. Her deliberation ended, and she sighed loudly. There was no point walking around with her sword drawn, so she put it back. Still, it didn’t mean she couldn’t remind him again through other methods. As quickly as she’d put the sword away she had her grip back on his clothes, slamming him against the wall with greater strength this time. “Learn to hold your tongue,” Terezi warned him, hands falling back against her side as she resumed the climb.

Grateful that his lunatic captor had decided to spare him a while longer, Karkat followed her up the steps, too tired to wonder exactly what had inspired her mercy. Thankfully, the rest of the walk was uneventful, the occasional goat crossing their paths and following along for a bit, until Terezi looked ready to eat it and it scampered off. Eventually the steps ended, just before a giant stone temple, one that Karkat had only read of, and he couldn’t stop himself from murmuring a soft noise of wonder at the sight of the place. He wondered idly what it looked like to Terezi, since clearly she wasn’t 100% blind, as she’d managed to hit that troll in the eye, but stealing a look at her, she seemed to be having a similar reaction. It made her look quite different, almost like a child, which was a nice change from psychopath, but he wasn’t about to let his guard down. It was nice seeing a gentler look on her face, but the longer this took, the longer it would be until he could sleep. “C’mon, they’re probably waiting for you,” he reminded her, taking a few steps up the stairs and hoping she’d follow.

As they reached High Hrothgar, even Terezi, with her years of masking and playing off emotion, couldn’t hide her wonderment at what was in front of her. It didn’t even matter if she couldn’t see it properly, just the knowledge of where she stood and how long she’d wanted to stand there for was enough. She was totally captivated by it all, only able to pull herself away once Karkat reminded them that they Greybears were waiting for her—a phrase she never thought she’d hear. She hadn’t thought too far into their arrival, quickly berating herself for not realizing that Karkat would be a problem. She tried not to fidget too much as they tried to deny him entry, trying to best evaluate how to proceed. Leaving Karkat outside would probably kill him, and as much as she’d wanted to do that earlier, a death from freezing like a dog was too pitiable. She’d demanded that he at least stayed in the hall, almost unbelieving that she was arguing with her childhood heroes over some stupid thief. She left Karkat in the hall with her book and a threat—unsure of any other way to keep him there. Logically, if he left he’d probably pass out from exhaustion and die, but there was always the off chance he’d surprise her. Maybe he’d feel morally obliged to stay or think she trusted him—she didn’t care, as long as he stayed put and the Greybeards didn’t realize she’d taken him hostage.

Karkat supposed he should have been lucky he was even allowed to cross the threshold and enter the temple at all. He was surprised when Terezi vouched for him, assuming she’d be more than happy to let him freeze on the doorstep. In contrast to Tavros though, she seemed less eager to reveal the true nature of their companionship to the Greybeards, passing off her book to him in the hall with a familiar, overly-gruesome hissed description of what she would do to him if he took off with it. He wondered if that was something like trust, but decided it was probably more like a game of truth or dare where if you don’t pick truth you probably die. Also unsurprisingly, the Greybeards made sure to lead Terezi far from the front hall for this, likely to make sure an outsider wouldn’t learn their secrets, even though Karkat could hear the booming of their shouts and feel the the rumble in the floor. It was annoying that they wouldn’t let him observe—as far as they knew, he was travelling with the Dragonborn anyway, surely he was going to see it all eventually.

With a sigh, Karkat carefully set the book down before rummaging around in his bag for ingredients for his wounds, pausing as he examined different items and tried to take into account the negative side effects. He settled on blue mountain flowers mixed with rock warbler eggs, grinding them in his mortar and pestle until they were a salve, spreading it across the cut on his neck and over the wounds on his shoulder. A bit more rummaging supplied some linen wrap, and he made makeshift bandages from it, in order to keep the salve in place so it could do its job. Bottling what he hadn’t used and putting everything away again, Karkat leaned his head against the stone walls, the ground shaking softly every so often from the shouts. With the medicine applied, his wounds were hurting less, and the sound of the shouts were so dull from here that they were almost like a hypnotic lull in his ears. He reached for the book, opening it in an attempt to reread it as something to do, but he didn’t make it past the first page before his eyes fell shut, his head sliding to rest against the pillar he was seated beside, and he drifted off to a much-needed sleep.

With Karkat sorted out, Terezi could turn her attention to the matters at hand. She’d been apprehensive about using her shout around them—especially when it had knocked Karkat over, who was considerably more fit and healthy than them—but she’d given in, grimacing a little as they braced and all but fell over too. It was interesting to listen to them talk, and also interesting to learn more about shouts. They certainly knew more than what was in books, and Terezi was fascinated to be thrown into such a world, taking her title for all it was worth with them. She’d picked up the Whirlwind Sprint shout with enthusiasm—also learning another part of the first shout she’d used—although didn’t really enjoy standing around in the snow so much. Karkat definitely would have perished out in it. It wasn’t until she was thinking about the snow that she remembered he was still in the hall, and decided it would probably be best to leave, but not before being told that her next quest would be to retrieve the Horn of Jurgen Windcaller.

Returning back to Karkat, Terezi couldn’t tell if he was dead, unable to pick out simple movements like a chest rising and falling. So she crouched down next to him, the back of her hand lightly pressing against his face and she tried to listen carefully. She managed to gather that, even while he was cold enough to be dead, he certainly was breathing. He sort of looked like a child when he was sleeping, although Terezi wasn’t sure whether to attribute that to the size difference between them—after all, she’d thought he had been a kid when she’d cornered him. She took him sleeping as a moment to check his injuries, surprised at the lack of smell; thus she managed to deduce that there was cloth over them, supporting his whole alchemy claim, which relieved her a little. Terezi moved to stand again, but noticed the faded sweetroll of the book she’d given him—pages apparently open. She wasn’t sure what to make of that, spending a few more minutes to look over Karkat with confusion. Eventually she had to give up, sighing as she stood again—but not before gently slipping the book out of his grasp and back into her bag. "Come on," she called to him, feeling even taller when she was stood back up and looking down at him. "Time to move again." Terezi tensed as Karkat didn’t move, suddenly unsure of her calculations about his current status. She raised her voice louder, only letting the tension roll out of her as Karkat started to stir. He seemed as annoying and annoyed as usual, which just seemed to be a permanent trait with him.

It wasn’t until her voice grew louder that it stirred him from his slumber, eyes blinking open slowly and blearily and lips immediately parting is a loud yawn. He wiped at his eyes, trying to rub the sleepy blurriness out for them before he looked up at Terezi, face falling back to its usual scowl when he realized she’d been the one forcing him awake. He wasn’t sure how long she’d been with the Greybeards, but he doubted it was very long—he felt just as sleepy as he had before, but he wasn’t sure if it was because it hadn’t been long at all, or if a restless sleep was to blame, when it felt like you’d only just shut your eyes but when you opened them again, hours had passed. He got to his feet clumsily, using the wall for support, and he was starting to think his nap had tired him out even more than than staying up would have. “How long was I out?” he murmured, rubbing at his eyes again and stifling another yawn. 

“A while,” she answered his question, unsure of timings herself but sure enough that enough of the day had passed for words to barely stick in her head anymore, falling away before she could process a sentence. 

“Do we have to go? I mean, the floor isn’t that comfortable but… I’m gonna be more useless than usual.” His whole body felt heavy and he was pretty sure he was moving slower, the honey that was slowing down his thought process earlier apparently having overtaken the rest of his body. He wasn’t sure that was the best thing to tell Terezi though—he still wasn’t sure why she hadn’t killed him yet, but if he made a point of how useless he was without sleep, he doubted she’d keep him around much longer. Still, without sleep he wasn’t going to survive, anyway. Adrenaline had gotten him through the fight with the troll but it had worn him out even more, and he doubted he’d be able to hold his own in a fight again in this state. But arguing with Terezi had proven to be a stupid idea time and time again, and he was too tired to try.

“We’re going back down, and then we’ll find the inn; you can’t sleep on the floor like a dog. It’s embarrassing to have to look at,” Terezi told him, disgust evident. Still, she herself could feel sympathy for how tired he felt. Even she was pushing her body beyond its limits now, unsure if she had any stamina left to draw upon. It probably would have been a better idea to sleep after all that sprinting, but… she didn’t actually have a logical solution why she wasn’t: completely ignoring the fact that she was pushing herself to collapse so that Karkat wouldn’t be tossed out while she was sleeping somewhere safe.

“Whatever—where are we going next? What did the Greybeards say?”

She waited until they’d left to disclose what the the Greybeards had told her, language sloppy with her thoughts—grammar slipping back into terrible habits from Dave. She could barely care to acknowledge it, only managing to tell Karkat about the shouts and the horn in an effort to keep herself awake. Every step was taxing, and if another troll showed up then she had no doubt that they’d both perish. Despite her lack of hope for their survival, they seemed to make it back down okay. She managed to comprehend directions enough to follow them, clinging to the knowledge that she’d be asleep within half an hour. Terezi completely missed the innkeeper’s name, uncaring for whatever room she was getting as she handed the money over. Relief was so close, but so far as they entered—she still needed to make sure Karkat wouldn’t go anywhere in the night. Rubbing the bridge of her nose, Terezi sighed as turned to him. “Daggers,” she requested, holding her hands out.

He didn’t argue with her, easily sliding his daggers from their sheaths and passing them off to Terezi. He wondered if he should hand off his third dagger, because if she found it on him while he was sleeping he was sure she’d slit his throat with it, but on that same note, if he revealed it now after having hidden it for so long, she’d probably still slit his throat. He could only hope for the best, and maybe if she did discover it, she would keep in mind that he’d chosen to assist her earlier instead of fleeing with both his life and his freedom—not very likely but he was far too tired to try to analyze the best route to go from here. “Anything else? Where am I sleeping?”

"Just two daggers? That’s all you keep on you? You don’t have a contingency plan?" Terezi cocked an eyebrow at Karkat, the weapons feeling too light in her hands. She knew thieves, and she wasn’t taking any chances. "I might not have been able to do anything about it earlier, but if you say this is all you have I’m going to make you strip—and I don’t think you want me to find something you haven’t told me about now," she smiled, letting her bag drop to the floor as she deposited the daggers and started to rummage around for a bedroll. She spread it out next to the bed as she waited for Karkat to decide what he wanted to do, almost desperate to curl up and sleep on it. She glanced between the bedroll, bed and Karkat—evaluating the three and the best way to work this out.

"You can take the bed. Logically you’d have to climb over me to get out of it, or attempt to get out by the bottom and the rope would have tugged by the time you hit it. Which I suppose brings us to our third point." Returning back to her bag, Terezi managed to salvage some rope from the bottom of it. Anyone fighting the crime of Skyrim always kept a nice piece of rope on them—you’d be an idiot not to. "It will probably be uncomfortable to sleep like, but if you’re as exhausted as me then you aren’t going to care so we can just get this done as quickly as possible."

Karkat took a minute to consider what Terezi said, but he didn’t doubt that even as tired as they both were, Terezi would kill him if she found any more weapons on him that he hadn’t told her about. Sighing, he lifted his knee, reaching towards the inside of his boot and pulling a small, steel dagger from his shoe and handing it off Terezi. “That’s the last one,” he sighed, idly kicking off his boots to sleep now that he no longer felt any need to keep them on all night. “Normally I have arrows on me too, but I didn’t bring my bow to a little sweep job, so I don’t have arrows on me either.”

Satisfied with his own actions and too tired to put much more thought into, anything, really, Karkat’s red eyes flickered towards the bed longingly, praying that Terezi would be merciful and dismiss him to sleep. "Can—" he was interrupted by his exhaustion, lips parting in a loud yawn. "Can we sleep now?" he asked, holding his wrists out for her to bind so he could go to bed.

Terezi couldn’t help but smirk as Karkat passed the dagger over, pleased that her instincts had payed off. It was still aggravating to know that he’d had another weapon on him the whole time, although she supposed he wouldn’t have gotten very far with one dagger while she was conscious. Unconscious was another matter though, and she wasn’t going to risk anything further. Terezi was sure that Karkat was about to pass out judging by his demeanor, but she couldn’t calculate which one of them would wake up first. If she was still sleeping and Karkat woke, he’d just have to get hold of another dagger and throw it at her neck before she even realized the rope moved—not exactly the start to the morning that she wanted. "We’ll sleep in a minute; I’m going to have to search you now," she sighed, itching for sleep just as much as Karkat was. "Just stand still and shut up, then I’ll tie you and we can sleep." She tried to keep her hands methodical; she wasn’t interested in Karkat’s body at all, trying to refrain from touching it as much as possible. The constant pockets and straps were irritating to her though, hissing a breath of frustration at the fact she was having to do this. At least Karkat had given in and up when she’d told him to, maybe they were making progress, or maybe he was just too tired to try anything.

"Okay," she finally relented. "Wrists," Terezi commanded, making sure to bind his wrists tightly—but not so that it would cut off the blood flow or greatly affect his shoulder: she didn’t want to have to deal with an amputation on top of everything. "I’ll just tie the other end when you’re in bed," Terezi dismissed him, not wanting to sit down until Karkat was settled, from fear that she’d fall asleep as soon as she hit the bedroll. Luckily he seemed to fall asleep almost instantly, which left Terezi free to relax into a more sluggish composure. She wearily lowered herself to the floor, quickly and securely tying the end of the rope to herself as well, before moving her bag to her side. If Karkat somehow did get up, at least she’d hear him rummaging around for his weapons. She made sure to carefully slide Pyralspite next to her too, annoyed with herself for not washing him off yet—but in no state to do so. She let her iron sword go under the bedroll, carefully wrapping it in spare cloth so she wouldn’t stab herself in the night.

With everything finally secured and as safe as she could think to make it, Terezi let herself fall back against the bedroll, body buzzing uncomfortably as she finally gave into the exhaustion, following Karkat’s lead within minutes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> john/dave is not a pairing, so you'll be glad to know that neither of them are actually pregnant


	8. carriage i

  
TEREZI: 1M SURP1S3D YOU 3V3N WOK3 UP FOR TH1S C4RR14G3 R1D3, YOU LOOK3D L1K3 YOU W3R3 D34D 4SL33P   
TEREZI: TH3 THOUGHT 4LMOST L3FT M3 OV3RWH3LM3D W1TH JOY   
TEREZI: UNT1L YOU MOV3D   
KARKAT: ...   
TEREZI: SO H4V3 YOU 3V3R B33N TO MORTH4L?   
KARKAT: NOPE, NEVER   
TEREZI: M3 31TH3R   
KARKAT: IT’S PRETTY SHIT THERE SO I DON’T THINK ANY OF US PAY IT MUCH MIND   
TEREZI: SH1T?   
KARKAT: IT’S KIND OF LIKE A FESTERING PUDDLE WITH SOME INSECTS FLYING AROUND IT   
TEREZI: SO 1TS 4 G14NT L4K3?   
KARKAT: IT’S MORE SWAMPY THAN LAKE BUT ESSENTIALLY   
TEREZI: GR34T   
TEREZI: HOW DO YOU KNOW SO MUCH 4BOUT 1T? BOOKS?   
KARKAT: THAT, AND I KNOW SOMEONE WHO LIVES THERE   
TEREZI: YOU DO?   
KARKAT: YEAH BUT WE PROBABLY WON’T RUN INTO HER SO DON’T WORRY ABOUT IT   
TEREZI: 4ND 1F W3 DO?   
KARKAT: MAYBE YOU CAN TAKE HER CAPTIVE TOO   
TEREZI: 1F SH3S 4NYTH1NG L1K3 YOU TH3N 1LL B3 MOR3 TH4N H4PPY TO L3T H3R GO FR33   
KARKAT: THEN WHY CAN’T I GO FREE   
TEREZI: B3C4US3 1 D1DNT KNOW WH4T 4 P41N YOU 4R3 WH3N 1 C4UGHT YOU   
KARKAT: THERE’S STILL TIME FOR ME TO GO THOUGH   
KARKAT: I MEAN   
KARKAT: I DON’T REALLY WANT TO GO INTO USTENGRAV   
TEREZI: WHY NOT?   
KARKAT: NORDIC TOMBS ARE NO PLACE FOR DUNMERS   
KARKAT: ALSO THEY’RE CREEPY   
TEREZI: BOO HOO   
KARKAT: THE GREYBEARDS DON’T WANT ME TO GO GET THE HORN I SHOULDN’T HAVE TO GO IN THERE   
KARKAT: THEY BARELY LET ME INSIDE   
TEREZI: SHOULD 1 T13 YOU UP OUTS1D3?   
KARKAT: YOU COULD LEAVE ME WITH MY FRIEND IN MORTHAL   
TEREZI: 1 DONT TH1NK SO   
KARKAT: I WOULDN’T RUN OFF   
KARKAT: I TOTALLY PROMISE   
TEREZI: 1 WOULD B3 H34RTBROK3N 1F YOU D1D   
TEREZI: 1 JUST C4NT R1SK 1T   
KARKAT: TIME HEALS ALL WOUNDS THOUGH, YOU’LL GET BY IN TIME   
TEREZI: T1M3 WONT H34L YOUR N3CK PROP3RLY   
KARKAT: IT MIGHT   
TEREZI: 1T WONT   
KARKAT: YOU DON’T EVEN KNOW WHAT THE WOUND LOOKS LIKE   
TEREZI: HOW DO YOU KNOW?   
TEREZI: 1 C4US3D 1T D1DNT 1? YOU DONT N33D V1S1ON TO KNOW WH4T M4RK YOUR3 GO1NG TO L34V3 1F YOU PR4CT1S3 W1TH 4 BL4D3 3NOUGH   
KARKAT: AND YOU KNOW WITHOUT A DOUBT THAT IT’LL SCAR   
TEREZI: 1 KNOW TH4T LOG1C4LLY 1T W1LL   
KARKAT: IT’S NOT IMPOSSIBLE THAT IT WON’T   
TEREZI: TH3N L3TS S33 WHO TURNS OUT R1GHT   
KARKAT: ASSUMING YOU KEEP ME ALIVE LONG ENOUGH FOR IT TO HEAL   
TEREZI: YOUR3 4L1V3 NOW 4R3NT YOU?   
KARKAT: YEAH, FOR THE MOMENT   
TEREZI: 1SNT TH4T 3NOUGH FOR SOM3ON3 L1K3 YOU?   
KARKAT: YEAH, THIS IS DEFINITELY BETTER THAN BEING IN A GROUP OF PEOPLE WHO LOOK OUT FOR EACH OTHER   
TEREZI: TH3Y D1DNT LOOK OUT FOR YOU TH4T GR34T   
KARKAT: I WASN’T SUPPOSED TO BE OUT THERE SO THEY WOULDN’T HAVE KNOWN TO LOOK OUT FOR ME ANYWAY   
TEREZI: TH3 WHOL3 C1TY S4W WH4T H4PP3N3D, M34N1NG TH3Y S4W YOU L34V3 W1TH M3   
KARKAT: THEY DON’T CONTROL EVERYTHING I DO, THEY MIGHT HAVE THOUGHT I WAS LEAVING WITH YOU BY CHOICE   
TEREZI: SO 31TH3R W4Y NO ON3 1S COM1NG 4FT3R YOU?   
KARKAT: I DON’T KNOW, IT’S NOT LIKE I CAN SPEAK TO THEM ANYMORE   
TEREZI: 1 GU3SS W3LL S33 4BOUT TH4T TOO, HUH?   
KARKAT: ...   
TEREZI: 1 WOULDNT B3 TOO S4D, 4R3NT YOU US3D TO 1T BY NOW?   
KARKAT: USED TO WHAT?   
TEREZI: YOU LOOK L1K3 TH3 K1ND OF K1D TH4T 3V3RYON3 4B4NDONS   
KARKAT: ...   
KARKAT: YEAH, I GUESS   
TEREZI: TH3N SHOULDNT YOU B3 US3D TO 1T?   
KARKAT: I GUESS I SHOULD BE   
TEREZI: GR34T   
TEREZI: B3C4US3 1 DONT W4NT YOUR 1SSU3S 4BOUT 1T DR4GG1NG US DOWN   
KARKAT: MHM   
KARKAT: THERE ISN’T ANY CHANCE YOU’D CONSIDER ABANDONING ME IS THERE   
TEREZI: TH3 ONLY T1M3 1LL 4B4NDON YOU 1S WH3N 1 K1LL YOU   
KARKAT: GREAT   
TEREZI: 4T L34ST 1LL ST1LL B3 W1TH YOU 4S YOU D13   
KARKAT: HOW DO YOU KNOW?   
TEREZI: W3LL UNL3SS 1 ST1CK PYR4LSP1T3 1N YOU TH3N W4LK OFF TO BUY 4 SW33TROLL   
TEREZI: 4CTU4LLY   
TEREZI: 1D JUST US3 MY 1RON ON3   
TEREZI: 1T WOULDNT R34LLY M4TT3R 1F SOM3ON3 STOL3 1T OUT OF YOUR THRO4T WH1L3 1 W4S GON3 BUY1NG FOOD   
KARKAT: CHARMING   
TEREZI: 1 GU3SS 1D ST1LL H4V3 TO GO THROUGH TH3 3FFORT OF BUY1NG 4NOTH3R ON3   
KARKAT: IRON SWORDS AREN’T THAT HARD TO COME BY, I’M SURE YOU’D MANAGE   
KARKAT: ON THAT NOTE   
KARKAT: SORT OF   
KARKAT: CAN WE MAYBE GET ME A BOW AT SOME POINT? OR DO YOU STILL NOT TRUST ME WITH MORE WEAPONS   
TEREZI: HOW GOOD 4R3 YOU?   
KARKAT: I DON’T KNOW   
KARKAT: I CAN KILL THINGS WITH IT SO   
KARKAT: GOOD ENOUGH   
TEREZI: W3LL TH4TS 3NCOUR4G1NG   
TEREZI: WHY SHOULD 1 G1V3 YOU 4 BOW?   
KARKAT: SO THAT NEXT TIME A TROLL TRIES TO KILL YOU, I DON’T HAVE TO DUCK UNDER ITS ARMS TO GET A HIT IN AND STILL END UP WITH A FUCKED SHOULDER   
TEREZI: HOW 4R3 YOU GO1NG TO F1R3 4 BOW W1TH 4 FUCK3D SHOULD3R?   
KARKAT: NOT GONNA FIND OUT WITHOUT A BOW   
TEREZI: T3RR1BL3 R34SON1NG   
KARKAT: I DON’T WANT TO GO INTO USTENGRAV WITH JUST DAGGERS   
KARKAT: AND A BAD SHOULDER   
KARKAT: YOU’RE NOT GOING TO PROTECT ME IF I GET INTO TROUBLE   
KARKAT: SO IT’D BE NICE TO BE ABLE TO LOOK AFTER MYSELF   
TEREZI: 4ND HOW DO 1 KNOW YOU WONT TURN 1T ON M3?   
KARKAT: UGH   
KARKAT: HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO SAY   
KARKAT: I’M NOT SELFISH ENOUGH TO KILL THE DRAGONBORN   
KARKAT: IF YOU WERE DEAD   
KARKAT: I’D JUST END UP KILLED BY A DRAGON A LITTLE LATER ANYWAY   
TEREZI: 1M HOLD1NG YOU C4PT1V3 4ND THR34T3N1NG TO K1LL YOU 1F 1 GROW BOR3D OF YOU 4ND YOUR3 NOT GO1NG TO DO 4NYTH1NG 4BOUT 1T  
KARKAT: WELL I’D LIKE TO NOT BE CAPTIVE  
KARKAT: BUT I’M NOT GOING TO TRY TO KILL YOU TO DO IT, NO  
TEREZI: WH4T 4 D1SGUST1NG S3NS3 OF S3LF PR3S3RV4T1ON  
KARKAT: WHATEVER  
TEREZI: ...  
TEREZI: M4YB3  
KARKAT: THANKS  
TEREZI: DO YOU 3V3N H4V3 3NOUGH GOLD FOR ON3?  
KARKAT: ...  
TEREZI: W3LL  
TEREZI: LOOKS L1K3 YOUR3 1N D3BT  
KARKAT: WOW SO  
KARKAT: HYPOTHETICALLY IF YOU EVER LET ME GO, I’D STILL BE IN DEBT AND YOU’D PROBABLY MAKE ME PAY IT OFF BY BEING YOUR PERSONAL PACK MULE/SLAVE AGAIN  
TEREZI: G3N3R4LLY TH3R3 1S 4 B4RT3R1NG SYST3M WH3N US1NG L3G1T1M4T3 CO1N  
TEREZI: 1F YOU C4NT P4Y 1T TH3N YOU T4K3 OUT 4 LO4N 4ND P4Y 1T W1TH 1NT3R3ST  
KARKAT: UGH  
KARKAT: I HAVE GOLD, I JUST DIDN’T HAVE IT WITH ME WHEN YOU TOOK ME  
TEREZI: 1 S41D L3G1T1M4T3 CO1N  
KARKAT: IT’S NOT THAT EASY TO MAKE  
TEREZI: SO 1TS 34S13R TO ST34L 1T FROM SOM3ON3 3LS3?  
KARKAT: PEOPLE WHO MAKE A STEADY INCOME AREN’T GOING TO MISS A FEW THINGS  
TEREZI: 1S TH4T R34LLY WH4T YOU TH1NK?  
KARKAT: I DON’T TAKE EVERYTHING I CAN GET MY HANDS ON  
TEREZI: DO YOU ST34L TH1NGS L1K3 GOLD RUBY N3CKL4C3S?  
KARKAT: SOMETIMES  
TEREZI: SO TH4TS F1V3 HUNDR3D 4ND F1FTY CO1NS WORTH, ROUGHLY? 4T L34ST 1F 1T W4S SOLD  
TEREZI: 1 DONT KNOW WH4T TH3 BL4CK M4RK3T 1S L1K3  
TEREZI: SO YOU JUST TOOK TH4T PROF1T  
TEREZI: 1M4G1N3 TH3Y DONT BUY 1N BULK FROM OTH3R SOURC3S  
TEREZI: TH3 N3CKL4C3 1S M4D3 FROM 4 RUBY 4ND GOLD OBV1OUSLY  
TEREZI: TH3YV3 JUST LOST TH3 MON3Y 1T SP3NT TO BUY THOS3 PRODUCTS  
TEREZI: TH3 M4T3R14LS TH3Y W4ST3D M4K1NG 1T, SUCH 4S L1GHT1NG TH3 FORG3  
TEREZI: TH3Y NOW H4V3 TO M4K3 TWO TO G3T B4CK 1NTO PROF1T  
TEREZI: SOM3ON3 H4S TO GO F1ND TH4T GOLD 4ND RUBY 1N TH3 F1RST PL4C3  
TEREZI: TH3Y M1GHT 3V3N H4V3 TO TR4V3L TO GO F1ND 4 S3LL3R  
TEREZI: 1F YOU BROK3 4 C4S3 TO G3T 1N, TH3N TH3Y N33D TO BUY 4 N3W ON3  
TEREZI: BUT 1M 4SSUM1NG YOU JUST DONT T4K3 ON3  
TEREZI: SO TH1NK OF 4LL TH3 M4T3R14LS TH4T NOW N33D TO B3 DOUBL3D TO R3M4K3 WH4T YOU TOOK  
TEREZI: MON3Y TH4T COULD F33D CH1LDR3N 1S GO1NG TO B3 SP3NT R3STOCK1NG 4 SHOP  
TEREZI: YOUR3 NOT 3V3N ST34L1NG FROM SHOPS, TH3YR3 ST4LL OWN3RS  
TEREZI: 4ND YOU TH1NK THOS3 P3OPL3 WONT NOT1C3 1TS M1SS1NG WH3N TH3YV3 NOW LOST DOUBL3 TH3 MON3Y TH3Y 4LR34DY LOST M4K1NG TH3 1T3MS  
TEREZI: BUT 1 GU3SS 1F YOU DONT C4R3 4BOUT TH3 MON3Y  
TEREZI: HOW DO YOU 3X4CTLY T3LL 4 CH1LD TH4T SOM3ON3 STOL3 SOM3TH1NG? TH4T SOM3ON3 C4N 1NTRUD3 1NTO TH31R PR1V4CY 4ND T4K3 WH4T TH3Y W4NT?  
TEREZI: WH4TS WORS3 TH4N T4K1NG MON3Y, 1S T4K1NG P3OPL3S D1GN1TY  
KARKAT: WHAT KIND OF LIFE DID YOU HAVE BEFORE YOU CAME DOWN TO RIFTEN TO DESTROY THE GUILD? YOU DON’T LOOK LIKE THE SORT OF PERSON WHO KNOWS ABOUT STARVING KIDS AND LOST DIGNITY BUT MAYBE I’M WRONG  
TEREZI: 1 W4S V3RY W3LL F3D 4S 4 CH1LD, 1 GU3SS 1M LUCKY TH4T 1T TURN3D TO MUSCL3 1NST34D OF F4T  
TEREZI: OF COURS3, SOM3 OF 1T MUST H4V3 GON3 TO MY BR41N 4ND TH4T 1S WHY 1 4M SO CL3V3R  
KARKAT: SO WHERE DID YOU LEARN ABOUT THESE POOR PEOPLE WHO NEED TO FEED THEIR KIDS, WHO HAVE TO TELL THEIR KIDS THAT SOMEONE NICKED A TRINKET FROM THEIR STALL?  
KARKAT: OUT OF CURIOSITY  
TEREZI: 1S TH1S 4N 4TT3MPT 4T R1L1NG M3 UP?  
TEREZI: OR D1D 1 R1L3 YOU UP?  
KARKAT: IT’S A QUESTION  
TEREZI: YOUR KNOWL3DG3 OF S3NT3NC3 TYP3S 4STOUNDS M3  
KARKAT: SO ARE YOU JUST GONNA PASS ON ANSWERING IT THEN OR  
TEREZI: 1M NOT T3LL1NG YOU 4BOUT MY L1F3  
KARKAT: CONVENIENT  
KARKAT: NEVERMIND THEN  
TEREZI: 1V3 ONLY TOLD YOU TH1NGS 1 DONT C4R3 4BOUT YOU KNOW1NG  
KARKAT: I DON’T KNOW WHY YOU CARE AT ALL—LOGICALLY SPEAKING I’M ONLY GOING TO FOLLOW YOU AROUND UNTIL I DIE SO IT’S NOT LIKE ME KNOWING EVEN ACTUALLY MATTERS  
TEREZI: DO YOU L1K3 T4LK1NG 4BOUT YOURS3LF? 4BOUT YOUR CH1LDHOOD 4ND HOW YOU 3ND3D UP 4S 4 TH13F?  
KARKAT: MAYBE I’D BE MORE WILLING TO SHARE IF YOU WERE  
KARKAT: THAT SAID  
KARKAT: I DOUBT YOU CARE  
TEREZI: 1 DONT  
KARKAT: THEN MAYBE WE SHOULD JUST SHUT UP UNTIL WE GET TO MORTHAL  
TEREZI: BUT TH4TS SO LONG  
KARKAT: I’M NOT GONNA SAY ANYTHING OF INTEREST ANYWAY  
TEREZI: PROB4BLY  
KARKAT: AND YOU AREN’T GONNA TALK ABOUT ANYTHING WORTH LISTENING TO  
KARKAT: SO WHAT’S THE POINT  
TEREZI: HOW RUD3  
TEREZI: 1 4M 4LW4YS WORTH L1ST3N1NG TO  
KARKAT: NOT WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT SHIT YOU PROBABLY DON’T ACTUALLY KNOW ABOUT  
KARKAT: ASIDE FROM IN THEORY  
TEREZI: YOU KNOW WHY 1 DONT C4R3 4BOUT YOUR CH1LDHOOD?  
KARKAT: I’M SURE YOU’RE GOING TO TELL ME WHY  
TEREZI: B3C4US3 YOUR3 TOO OBV1OUS  
KARKAT: AM I  
TEREZI: T4LK1NG 4BOUT SH1T 1 PROB4BLY DONT KNOW 4BOUT  
TEREZI: DO3S 1T UNS3TTL3 YOU TH4T 1 T4LK OF ST4RV1NG CH1LDR3N? OR TH4T 1M T3LL1NG YOU YOUR3 P4RT OF 4N ORG4N1Z4T1ON TH4T CONTR1BUT3S TO 1T  
KARKAT: IT UNSETTLES ME THAT YOU TALK ABOUT IT LIKE IT’S DEEPLY AFFECTED YOU  
KARKAT: IF YOU WERE ONE OF THE STARVING CHILDREN, MAYBE I’D CARE  
TEREZI: 1 D1DNT ST4RV3, BUT 1V3 S33N PL3NTY WHO H4V3  
TEREZI: YOU C4N H4V3 COMP4SS1ON  
TEREZI: 3V3N 1F 1 PROB4BLY S33M 1NC4P4BL3 OF 1T  
KARKAT: YEAH, LET ME TAKE SOME COMPASSION LESSONS FROM YOU. I’LL GET OUT MY JOURNAL AND EVEN TAKE SOME NOTES!  
TEREZI: YOU 4R3 T3RR1BLY B4D 4T R34D1NG P3OPL3  
KARKAT: MAYBE I’M JUST NOT AS GOOD AS YOU, SINCE CLEARLY YOU’RE THE EXPERT AND YOU’VE GOT ME ALL FIGURED OUT  
TEREZI: TH4TS R1GHT  
TEREZI: 1M TH3 B3ST TH3R3 1S  
TEREZI: 3V3RYON3 US3D TO TH1NK 1 US3D 1LLUS1ON M4G1C  
TEREZI: WH1CH 1S DUMB B3C4US3 NO S3LF R3SP3CT1NG R3DGU4RD WOULD 3V3R US3 1T  
KARKAT: UH HUH  
KARKAT: OKAY SO IF YOU’RE THE BEST THERE IS  
KARKAT: AND I’M SO OBVIOUS  
KARKAT: BUT NEITHER OF US WANTS TO TALK ABOUT IT  
KARKAT: WHY DON’T YOU TELL ME ABOUT MY CHILDHOOD  
KARKAT: IT CAN BE LIKE A FUN GAME  
TEREZI: YOU W3R3 4ROUND ST4RV1NG CH1LDR3N  
KARKAT: WHOA!! WHERE DID YOU PULL THAT ONE FROM  
KARKAT: YOU’RE CHEATING  
TEREZI: 1M ST1LL R1GHT  
KARKAT: WELL YOU WERE AROUND STARVING CHILDREN TOO, RIGHT?  
TEREZI: ST4RV1NG FROM L4CK OF 1NT3LL1G3NC3  
KARKAT: RIGHT  
KARKAT: SO IS THAT ALL YOU’VE GOT? I WAS AROUND STARVING KIDS?  
TEREZI: 1NF3R1OR1TY COMPL3X  
TEREZI: PROB4BLY WHY YOUR3 SO UNL1K34BL3  
KARKAT: IT’S KINDA NICE THOUGH, YOU HAVE A SUPERIORITY COMPLEX TO MATCH  
TEREZI: W3LL 4R3NT W3 P3RF3CT  
TEREZI: BUT YOUR3 WRONG  
TEREZI: 1 ONLY TH1NK 1M MOR4LLY SUP3R1OR  
TEREZI: 1 KNOW 1M B3TT3R TH4N YOU B3C4US3 1 DONT ST34L FROM 1NNOC3NT P3OPL3  
TEREZI: BUT 1M NOT B3TT3R TH4N TH3 4V3R4G3 M4N  
KARKAT: WELL  
KARKAT: TECHNICALLY YOU ARE  
KARKAT: YOU’RE THE DRAGONBORN, YOU’RE THE HERO WHO GETS TO SAVE SKYRIM  
TEREZI: WH4TS TH3R3 TO S4V3?  
KARKAT: ALL THE INNOCENT PEOPLE YOU CARE SO MUCH ABOUT?  
TEREZI: YOU S33  
TEREZI: YOU C4NT R34D M3 4T 4LL  
TEREZI: B3C4US3 YOU DONT KNOW MY MOT1V3S  
TEREZI: YOU TH1NK YOU C4N GU3SS TH3M  
KARKAT: THAT WASN’T A GUESS, IT WAS A SUGGESTION, ALTHOUGH I GUESS I’M A BIT SURPRISED THAT YOU’RE WILLING TO SAVE PEOPLE FROM THIEVES BUT NOT FIRE BREATHING MONSTERS WHO ARE LITERALLY DESTROYING CITIES AND KILLING PEOPLE FOR  
KARKAT: FOR WHAT?  
KARKAT: I MEAN THEY’RE NOT EVEN EATING US  
TEREZI: W3 PROB4BLY T4ST3 T3RR1BL3  
KARKAT: SO WHY ARE THEY KILLING US  
TEREZI: 1 DONT KNOW  
TEREZI: L3T M3 JUST C4LL ON3 DOWN W1TH MY SP3C14L POW3RS FOR 4 QU1CK CH4T  
KARKAT: MAYBE YOU’LL BE ABLE TO WHEN YOU IMPROVE  
TEREZI: 1 W1SH  
KARKAT: WHATEVER, WE’RE NOT ANALYZING THE DRAGON MOVEMENT HERE  
KARKAT: WE’RE PLAYING FIGURE OUT KARKAT’S CHILDHOOD  
TEREZI: 4R3 YOU TH4T D3SP3R4T3 FOR M3 TO P4Y 4TT3NT1ON TO YOU?  
KARKAT: IT’S ACTUALLY KIND OF ENTERTAINING FOR ME  
TEREZI: 1 DONT W4NT YOU TO H4V3 FUN  
KARKAT: ARE YOU NOT HAVING FUN PICKING OUT MY FLAWS AND STUFF?  
TEREZI: 1T ONLY D3PR3SS3S M3 FURTH3R TH4T 4 CR34TUR3 L1K3 YOU COULD 3X1ST  
KARKAT: THEN I LIKE THIS GAME EVEN MORE  
TEREZI: 1N 4NY C4S3 YOUR P4R3NTS 4R3 D34D  
KARKAT: WELL YEAH, HOW COULD I BE THE STREET ORPHAN STEREOTYPE IF MY PARENTS WEREN’T DEAD?  
TEREZI: D1D TH3Y D13 TR4G1C4LLY?  
TEREZI: OR BRUT4LLY?  
TEREZI: D1D YOU W4TCH?  
KARKAT: IS THERE A NON TRAGIC WAY FOR YOUR PARENTS TO DIE?  
TEREZI: 4S H3RO3S  
KARKAT: ISN’T THE DEATH OF A HERO MORE TRAGIC THAN THE DEATH OF AN ORDINARY PERSON, THOUGH?  
TEREZI: NO  
KARKAT: WHY NOT?  
TEREZI: TH3Y D13D B3FOR3 TH3Y GOT BOR1NG  
KARKAT: THEY DIED, AND ALL THE HOPE THEY BROUGHT EVERYONE DIED WITH THEM  
KARKAT: THAT SOUNDS MORE TRAGIC TO ME  
TEREZI: TH3R3S 4LW4YS N3W H3RO3S  
TEREZI: N3W FOOLS  
KARKAT: MAYBE  
TEREZI: YOU W3R3 POOR BUT YOU C4N R34D  
TEREZI: 1 H4V3 TO 4DM1T 1 ST1LL DONT UND3RST4ND TH4T ON3  
TEREZI: M1ND YOU  
TEREZI: YOU COULDNT DO 4NYTH1NG 3LS3 R1GHT  
TEREZI: NO M4G1C  
TEREZI: R34D1NG W4S PROB4BLY TH3 ONLY TH1NG YOU D1DNT SUCK 4T  
KARKAT: MY FIRST COMPLIMENT  
KARKAT: THANK GOD YOU CAN’T SEE ME CRYING  
TEREZI: 1TS 4CTU4LLY 3MB4RR4SS1NG TH4T YOU ST1LL T4LK 4BOUT M3 L1K3 1M BL1ND  
TEREZI: YOU JUST LOOK 3V3N MOR3 1GNOR4NT TH4N YOU 4LR34DY 4R3  
KARKAT: I’M NOT SAYING YOU’RE BLIND  
KARKAT: I THINK YOU CAN SEE BUT YOU CAN’T SEE WELL  
KARKAT: SO IF I WAS CRYING I DON’T THINK YOU’D BE ABLE TO SEE THAT  
KARKAT: BUT IF I GOT UP AND JUMPED OFF THE CARRIAGE YOU’D PROBABLY SEE THAT  
TEREZI: 1 S33 WH4T3V3R 1S STRONG  
KARKAT: WHATEVER IS STRONG  
TEREZI: Y3S  
TEREZI: TH4TS WH4T 1 S41D  
KARKAT: SO IF I WAS CRYING WOULD YOU BE ABLE TO SEE THAT  
TEREZI: WHY DONT 1 POK3 YOUR 3Y3S OUT 4ND F1ND OUT  
KARKAT: I’M GOOD  
TEREZI: TH3N 1 GU3SS W3LL N3V3R KNOW  
KARKAT: OH WELL  
TEREZI: M4YB3 WH3N YOU CRY OV3R YOUR 4B4NDONM3NT 1SSU3S 1LL T4K3 4 MOM3NT TO CH3CK  
KARKAT: I HAVEN’T CRIED OVER THOSE IN A WHILE SO HAVE FUN WAITING  
TEREZI: 1LL 4DD 1T TO MY GO4LS  
KARKAT: I’M HONORED TO MAKE THAT LIST  
TEREZI: W3LL 1LL H4V3 TO F1ND SOM3TH1NG 3NT3RT41N1NG FOR TH1S R1D3  
KARKAT: MY GAME ISN’T SATISFACTORY ANYMORE?  
TEREZI: NO  
TEREZI: YOUR CH1LDHOOD 1S BOR1NG  
TEREZI: 4ND YOUR 1SSU3S 4NNOY1NG  
KARKAT: IF YOU SAY SO  
TEREZI: 1 KNOW SO  
KARKAT: IF YOU SAY YOU KNOW SO  
TEREZI: 1 KNOW 1 KNOW SO  
KARKAT: IF YOU SAY YOU KNOW YOU KNOW SO  
TEREZI: 1 4M GO1NG TO SL1T YOUR THRO4T TH3N DR1NK YOUR BLOOD  
KARKAT: YOU SHOULD HAVE JUST GOTTEN A TASTE LAST TIME, I DON’T FEEL LIKE THAT AGAIN  
TEREZI: M4YB3 N3XT T1M3 1 W1LL  
TEREZI: 1T T4ST3S L1K3 SNOWB3RR13S  
KARKAT: SNOWBERRIES? I DON’T THINK MY BLOOD TASTES LIKE SNOWBERRIES  
TEREZI: 4LL BLOOD T4ST3S L1K3 SNOWB3RR13S  
KARKAT: UHHH  
TEREZI: 1TS GOOD  
KARKAT: UGH  
KARKAT: IS THERE SERIOUSLY GOING TO BE A NEXT TIME?  
TEREZI: 1 H4V3 TO TR41N YOU TO K33P YOUR MOUTH SHUT SOM3HOW  
KARKAT: HOW’S IT WORKING OUT SO FAR?  
TEREZI: 1 D3C1D3D TH4T 1LL ST4RT CUTT1NG OFF YOUR F1NG3RS  
KARKAT: I DECIDED I’M NOT GOING TO TALK ANYMORE STARTING NOW  
TEREZI: GOOD BOY  
KARKAT: ...  
TEREZI: TH4TS R34LLY SHUT YOU UP?  
KARKAT: ...  
TEREZI: R34LLY?  
KARKAT: ...  
TEREZI: R33333334LLY?  
KARKAT: ......  
TEREZI: W3LL 1 KNOW WH4T TO DO NOW  
TEREZI: CUT OFF YOUR F1NG3RS 4ND W3R3 S3TTL3D  
KARKAT: ...  
TEREZI: BUT 1 SUPPOS3 TH4T WOULD M4K3 R34D1NG T3D1OUS  
TEREZI: S331NG 4S 1D H4V3 TO TURN TH3 P4G3S  
KARKAT: ......  
TEREZI: YOU KNOW 1M NOT GO1NG TO CUT TH3M OFF NOW, R1GHT?  
KARKAT: ...  
TEREZI: K4RK4T  
KARKAT: ...  
TEREZI: K444444RK4T  
KARKAT: ......  
TEREZI: K44444444444444444444RK4T  
KARKAT: ...........  
TEREZI: K444444RK4444444444T  
KARKAT: .....  
TEREZI: 1M GO1NG TO CHOP OFF YOUR F1NG3RS 1F YOU DONT SP34K  
KARKAT: WOW  
TEREZI: GOTCH4  
KARKAT: YEAH YOU GOT ME, IF YOU’RE GOING TO ATTACK ME OBVIOUSLY I’M GOING TO LISTEN TO YOU  
TEREZI: 1 L1K3 TH1S D3V3LOPM3NT  
KARKAT: UGH  
TEREZI: 4T L34ST YOUR3 L34RN1NG  
KARKAT: I ALREADY KNOW HOW TO HOLD MY TONGUE SO I DON’T GET HURT  
KARKAT: I JUST DIDN’T CARE BEFORE  
TEREZI: WHY?  
KARKAT: WHY WHAT?  
TEREZI: WHY D1DNT YOU C4R3?  
KARKAT: YOU GET SICK OF LISTENING TO PEOPLE TALK DOWN ON YOU AND JUST HOLDING YOUR TONGUE, I DON’T KNOW  
TEREZI: P4TH3T1C  
KARKAT: REALLY? I TALKED DOWN ON YOU FOR 30 SECONDS AND YOU JUST ABOUT SLIT MY THROAT, I DON’T THINK YOU’D HAVE DONE WELL LIVING YOUR WHOLE LIFE THAT WAY  
TEREZI: 1D B33N P4T13NT W1TH YOU LONG 3NOUGH 1T W4S 4BOUT T1M3 TO PUT YOU 1N YOUR PL4C3  
KARKAT: I KNOW ALL ABOUT MY PLACE  
TEREZI: 3V1D3NTLY YOU DONT  
KARKAT: I DO  
TEREZI: 1 D1DNT T4K3 YOU FOR MUCH OF 4 JOK3R  
KARKAT: UGH  
TEREZI: BUT DONT WORRY  
TEREZI: 1LL M4K3 SUR3 TO K33P T34CH1NG YOU  
KARKAT: ONCE AGAIN, I DON’T NEED TO BE TAUGHT ABOUT MY PLACE BUT IF IT MAKES YOU FEEL LIKE YOU’RE DOING SOCIETY A SERVICE THEN WHATEVER, DOESN’T MAKE MUCH OF A DIFFERENCE TO ME  
TEREZI: L1K3 1 S41D, 3V1D3NTLY YOU DONT KNOW 1T  
KARKAT: WHATEVER  
KARKAT: CAN I GO BACK TO NOT TALKING NOW?  
TEREZI: NO  
KARKAT: WHY NOT?  
TEREZI: TOO BOR1NG  
KARKAT: IT’S NOT LIKE ANYTHING I SAY IS WORTH LISTENING TO THOUGH  
TEREZI: NO1S3 1S NO1S3  
TEREZI: 1TS NOT L1K3 TH3 SC3N3RY 1S V3RY 3NJOY4BL3  
KARKAT: THEN JUST LISTEN TO YOURSELF TALK  
TEREZI: 1 H4V3 NOTH1NG TO S4Y  
KARKAT: THEN I GUESS IT’S GONNA BE A QUIET RIDE  
TEREZI: YOU G3T OFF3ND3D SO 34S1LY  
KARKAT: I’M NOT OFFENDED, I’M TIRED  
TEREZI: YOU SL3PT MOR3 TH4N 1 D1D  
KARKAT: THAT’S NOT WHAT I MEAN  
TEREZI: W3LL 1D G3T US3D TO 1T 1F 1 W3R3 YOU  
KARKAT: MHM  
TEREZI: TH1NGS W1LL JUST B3 3V3N MOR3 4NNOY1NG 1F YOU DONT  
KARKAT: FOR WHICH ONE OF US?  
TEREZI: M3 OBV1OUSLY  
KARKAT: THOUGHT SO  
TEREZI: DONT SOUND SO UPS3T  
KARKAT: HOW DO YOU THINK I SHOULD SOUND? WHAT WOULD SUIT YOUR NEEDS BETTER?  
TEREZI: TH3R3S SOM3TH1NG 4BOUT 4 BOY ON TH3 V3RG3 OF 4 BR34KDOWN TH4T 1 L1K3  
TEREZI: M4YB3 YOU COULD TRY TH4T  
KARKAT: WHY WOULD YOU LIKE THAT  
TEREZI: TH4T D3GR4D4T1ON K1NK N3V3R G3TS OLD  
KARKAT: BUT THEN YOU’D HAVE TO DEAL WITH MORE OF MY ISSUES  
KARKAT: AND THOSE DO GET OLD  
TEREZI: WH4TS 4 B1T OF PL34SUR3 1F YOU DONT SUFF3R FOR 1T?  
KARKAT: UGH  
TEREZI: H4H4H4  
KARKAT: ...  
TEREZI: L1GHT3N UP  
KARKAT: RIGHT  
KARKAT: SORRY I’M NOT BEING A CHEERFUL ENOUGH PRISONER FOR YOU  
TEREZI: W3LL YOUR3 NOT 4CT1NG M1S3R4BL3 3NOUGH 31TH3R  
KARKAT: WELL YOU WON’T LET ME QUIETLY MOPE  
TEREZI: DO 1T 4LOUD  
KARKAT: NO  
TEREZI: 1 W4NT TO THR1V3 ON YOUR D3SP41R  
KARKAT: YOU CAN THRIVE ON MY QUIET DESPAIR OR YOU CAN GO HUNGRY  
TEREZI: 1LL JUST H4V3 TO F1ND 4 W4Y TO M4K3 1T LOUD3R  
KARKAT: I GUESS SO  
TEREZI: SO T3LL M3 4BOUT YOUR FR13ND  
KARKAT: NO  
TEREZI: HOW RUD3  
KARKAT: SORRY  
TEREZI: T3LL M3 4BOUT H3R  
KARKAT: NO  
TEREZI: 1 DONT W4NT H3R L1F3 STORY  
TEREZI: JUST 3NOUGH TO KNOW 1F 1 SHOULD K1LL H3R  
KARKAT: WOW, THAT MAKES ME REALLY WANT TO TELL YOU ABOUT HER  
TEREZI: YOU C4N K1LL MY FR13ND 1N R3TURN  
KARKAT: YOU HAVE A FRIEND IN MORTHAL?  
TEREZI: 1 SUPPOS3  
KARKAT: YOU SUPPOSE  
TEREZI: Y3S  
KARKAT: WELL I GUESS IF YOU’RE SAYING I CAN KILL HER YOU TOO PROBABLY AREN’T VERY CLOSE  
TEREZI: M4YB3 1 JUST DONT C4R3 4BOUT MY FR13NDS  
KARKAT: THE MORE WE TALK, THE BETTER A PERSON YOU SEEM TO BE  
KARKAT: BUT YOU CARED ABOUT TAVROS SO I KNOW THAT’S A LIE  
TEREZI: H1S TROLL WOULD H4V3 K1LL3D M3  
KARKAT: I’M SURE THAT’S WHAT IT WAS  
KARKAT: AND I BET  
KARKAT: HIS TROLL WOULD HAVE KILLED YOU IF YOU GUYS HADN’T HUGGED A FEW TIMES, AND IF YOU HADN’T ASKED HIM TO WRITE YOU  
KARKAT: THE TROLL PROBABLY WOULD HAVE TRACKED YOU DOWN AND KILLED YOU  
TEREZI: W3LL H3 D1D S4Y TH4T TH3Y 4R3 V3RY 1NT3LL1G3NT  
KARKAT: SURE, TEREZI  
TEREZI: ...  
KARKAT: SO WHY DON’T YOU TELL ME ABOUT YOUR FRIEND  
TEREZI: T4VROS?  
TEREZI: YOU SOUND3D L1K3 YOU KN3W MOR3 4BOUT H1M TH4N 1 D1D  
KARKAT: THE ONE IN MORTHAL  
TEREZI: 1 KNOW H3R OUT OF OBL1G4T1ON  
TEREZI: W3 DONT R34LLY T4LK  
TEREZI: SH3 C4US3S PROBL3MS FOR 3V3RYON3  
KARKAT: HOW DO YOU KNOW SHE’S THERE, THEN, IF YOU’VE NEVER BEEN?  
TEREZI: 1 KNOW H3R THROUGH SOM3ON3 3LS3  
KARKAT: WHAT’S HER NAME?  
TEREZI: ROS3  
KARKAT: WHY DON’T YOU LIKE HER?  
TEREZI: N3XT QU3ST1ON  
KARKAT: HOW EXACTLY DO YOU KNOW HER?  
TEREZI: TG  
KARKAT: OH  
KARKAT: HOW DOES TG KNOW HER? WAS SHE FROM WHITERUN?  
TEREZI: S1BL1NGS  
KARKAT: OH  
KARKAT: IS SHE FROM WHITERUN?  
TEREZI: SH3S L1V3D TH3R3 BUT 1TS NOT H3R B1RTH PL4C3  
KARKAT: WHAT IS HER BIRTH PLACE?  
TEREZI: DO YOU W4NT M3 TO S3T YOU UP W1TH H3R OR SOM3TH1NG?  
KARKAT: I LIKE STORIES  
KARKAT: BUT IF YOU DON’T LIKE HER, SHE MIGHT NOT BE SO BAD  
TEREZI: UGH  
TEREZI: D4WNST4R  
KARKAT: THAT’S PRETTY FAR FROM WHITERUN  
TEREZI: YUP  
KARKAT: WHY’S SHE IN MORTHAL?  
TEREZI: 1 DONT R34LLY KNOW  
TEREZI: 4PP4R3NTLY SOM3 G1RL H4S T4K3N P1TY ON H3R  
KARKAT: SOME GIRL HAS TAKEN PITY ON HER  
TEREZI: TH4TS WH4T 1 S41D  
KARKAT: WHAT DOES THAT EVEN MEAN  
TEREZI: TH4T TH3YR3 G3TT1NG M4RR13D? 1 DONT KNOW  
KARKAT: SO THEY’RE IN LOVE THEN  
TEREZI: UGH  
KARKAT: DO YOU HAVE SOME ISSUE WITH LOVE, THEN?  
TEREZI: 1TS SO BOOOR1NG  
KARKAT: IT’S BORING  
TEREZI: YOU H4V3 4 H4B1T OF R3P34T1NG M3  
KARKAT: WHY DO YOU THINK IT’S BORING?  
TEREZI: NOTH1NG 3XC1T1NG H4PP3NS  
KARKAT: WOW  
KARKAT: HAVE YOU EVER ACTUALLY BEEN IN LOVE?  
TEREZI: OF COURS3!  
KARKAT: REALLY?  
TEREZI: 1 KNOW 1T S33MS 1MPOSS1BL3, BUT 1 4M C4P4BL3 OF LOV1NG P3OPL3 4ND B31NG LOV3D  
TEREZI: 1 M34N, WHO WOULDNT W4NT TO SP3ND TH3 R3ST OF TH31R L1F3 W1TH SOM3ON3 4S GORG3OUS 4ND 1NT3LL1G3NT 4S 1?  
KARKAT: SO DO YOU HAVE SOMEONE NOW WHO WANTS TO SPEND THE REST OF THEIR LIFE WITH YOU?  
TEREZI: NOP3!  
KARKAT: IMAGINE THAT  
TEREZI: 1 D1D, BUT 1 R34L1Z3D TH4T 1 D1DNT W4NT TO SP3ND TH3 R3ST OF MY L1F3 W1TH 4NYON3  
TEREZI: WH4T 4 BURD3N  
KARKAT: SO YOU ENDED THINGS?  
TEREZI: MUTU4LLY  
KARKAT: WAS THE REASON SERIOUSLY ‘IT’S A BURDEN TO BE IN A RELATIONSHIP’?  
TEREZI: WHO KNOWS  
KARKAT: I’D THINK YOU WOULD  
TEREZI: 1 DONT TH1NK YOUD C4R3  
KARKAT: I LIKE STORIES  
TEREZI: OF MY P3RSON4L L1F3?  
KARKAT: YEAH, SURE  
TEREZI: 1 H4D MY OWN 4G3ND4S 4ND H3 W4S SC4R3D OF TH3M  
KARKAT: HE WAS SCARED OF THEM?  
TEREZI: H3 W4S UND3R TH3 1MPR3SS1ON TH4T 1D D13  
KARKAT: WHAT WAS THE AGENDA, DESTROYING THE THIEVES GUILD AND STUFF LIKE THAT?  
TEREZI: 1 SUPPOS3  
KARKAT: SURELY YOU KNOW YOUR OWN AGENDA  
TEREZI: 1 DO  
TEREZI: BUT 1 DONT W4NT TO T3LL YOU 1T  
KARKAT: RIGHT  
KARKAT: DO YOU TWO STILL TALK? OR IS IT TOTALLY OVER NOW  
TEREZI: W3 T4LK  
KARKAT: OFTEN? OR OUT OF OBLIGATION  
TEREZI: NO  
TEREZI: H3S NOT OUT OF OBL1G4T1ON  
KARKAT: ...  
KARKAT: IS IT... TG?  
TEREZI: 1 D1DNT R34D H1S L3TT3R  
KARKAT: DO YOU WANT ME TO READ IT TO YOU?  
TEREZI: NO  
TEREZI: 1 DONT R34LLY C4R3 4BOUT 1T  
KARKAT: WHY?  
TEREZI: D1D 1T SOUND L1K3 1T M4D3 4NY S3NS3?  
KARKAT: NO BUT IT WAS INTERESTING  
TEREZI: 1 C4NT S4Y 1M OV3RLY 1NT3R3ST3D 1N 4NYON3S ROM4NT1C L1F3  
TEREZI: 3V3N 1F 1T 1S TH3 N3XT SC4ND4L OF WH1T3RUN  
KARKAT: YEAH  
KARKAT: SO DO YOU KNOW THE GUY HE’S TALKING ABOUT?  
KARKAT: BALGRUUF THE GREATER’S SON?  
TEREZI: JOHN?  
TEREZI: Y3S  
KARKAT: ME TOO  
TEREZI: R1GHT  
KARKAT: IT DOESN’T REALLY MATTER IF YOU BELIEVE ME BUT WHAT WOULD BE THE POINT OF LYING AND SAYING I KNOW HIM WHEN I DON’T?  
TEREZI: 1 DONT KNOW  
TEREZI: 1 DONT S33 WHY YOU WOULD KNOW H1M  
KARKAT: I KNOW HIM THROUGH SOMEONE ELSE  
TEREZI: WHO?  
KARKAT: WHY DO YOU CARE? ISN’T MY WHOLE LIFE STORY BORING? YOU DON’T EVEN BELIEVE ME ANYWAY  
TEREZI: 1 KNOW 4 LOT OF P3OPL3 1N WH1T3RUN  
TEREZI: 1M CUR1OUS  
KARKAT: I BET YOU DON’T KNOW MINE  
TEREZI: SO TRY M3  
KARKAT: HER NAME IS JADE  
TEREZI: J4D3?  
KARKAT: YEAH  
KARKAT: DO YOU KNOW HER?  
TEREZI: NO  
KARKAT: DIDN’T THINK SO  
KARKAT: SHE WAS A STARVING KID TOO, AND SO FAR IT SEEMS LIKE YOU KNOW JARL’S SONS, AND JARL’S SON’S BOYFRIENDS  
TEREZI: YOUR 1SSU3S 4R3 SHOW1NG 4G41N D4RL1NG  
KARKAT: IT’D GET BORING IF THEY DIDN’T TURN UP ONCE IN A WHILE  
TEREZI: 1S YOUR FR13ND 1N MORTH4L 4 ST4RV1NG ORPH4N TOO?  
KARKAT: YOU COULD SAY THAT  
TEREZI: SO WH4T 4R3 W3 GO1NG TO DO 1F SH3 S33S US TOG3TH3R?  
KARKAT: I DON’T KNOW TEREZI, I GUESS THAT ONE’S ON YOU TO FIGURE OUT  
TEREZI: W3LL 1 GU3SS W3LL JUST H4V3 TO T3LL H3R 4BOUT HOW CR4ZY 1 4M FOR YOU  
KARKAT: SHE’S PRETTY SMART  
KARKAT: SHE MIGHT NOT BUY IT UNLESS YOU REALLY ACT THE PART  
TEREZI: 1 KNOW HOW TO 4CT  
KARKAT: I DON’T KNOW IF YOU COULD CONVINCE HER, SHE KNOWS ME PRETTY WELL  
KARKAT: SHE KNOWS MY TYPE  
TEREZI: ST4RV1NG CH1LDR3N?  
KARKAT: YES, THAT’S IT EXACTLY  
TEREZI: 1 C4N SK1P 4 M34L 4ND S33 1F TH4T DO3S 4NYTH1NG FOR YOU  
KARKAT: WOW THE MERE MENTION OF YOU SKIPPING A MEAL IS ALREADY DOING SOMETHING FOR ME  
TEREZI: S33 W3 C4N M4K3 TH1S WORK  
KARKAT: I DON’T THINK WE’LL RUN INTO HER THOUGH  
TEREZI: GOOD  
TEREZI: 1 DONT W4NT TO H4V3 TO CL34N PYR4LSP1T3 4G41N  
KARKAT: I THINK WE’RE DONE TALKING  
TEREZI: K33P 1T 1N M1ND  
KARKAT: YOU HAVE NO GROUNDS TO DO THAT  
TEREZI: 1F YOU FUCK UP 1 H4V3 3V3RY GROUND  
KARKAT: HOW DOES MY FUCKING UP HAVE ANYTHING TO DO WITH HER?  
TEREZI: B3C4US3 1F YOU FUCK UP 1N FRONT OF H3R TH3N 1LL K1LL H3R 4ND TH3N M4YB3 YOU  
TEREZI: M4YB3 1LL L3T YOU L1V3 W1TH TH3 GU1LT OF KNOW1NG 1T W4S YOUR F4ULT  
KARKAT: BUT SHE HASN’T DONE ANYTHING, YOU CAN’T HURT HER OVER SOMETHING I’VE DONE  
TEREZI: TH3N M4K3 SUR3 SH3 DO3SNT DO 4NYTH1NG 31THR  
KARKAT: SO, WHAT, YOU HAVE MORALS BUT ONLY WHEN IT’S CONVENIENT FOR YOU?  
TEREZI: 3X4CTLY  
KARKAT: UGH  
KARKAT: SO IF WE RUN INTO YOUR FRIEND FROM WHITERUN  
KARKAT: WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO TELL HER ABOUT ME?  
TEREZI: 1M NOT GO1NG TO T4LK TO H3R 4T 4LL  
KARKAT: IF SHE WALKS UP TO YOU AND SAYS “HI TEREZI” YOU’RE JUST GOING TO IGNORE HER?  
TEREZI: 1M GO1NG TO TO T3LL H3R TO B4CK OFF, 4ND TH3N 1GNOR3 H3R  
KARKAT: WOW  
TEREZI: 1 DONT H4V3 T1M3 FOR H3R  
KARKAT: YOU HAD TIME FOR TAVROS  
TEREZI: H3 SHOULD CONS1D3R H1MS3LF LUCKY TH3N  
KARKAT: YOU OBVIOUSLY CARE ABOUT HIM I DON’T KNOW WHY YOU’RE PRETENDING LIKE YOU DON’T  
TEREZI: WH4T 1F YOU ST4RT TO TH1NK 1 4CTU4LLY H4V3 F33L1NGS TH4T OTH3R HUM4NS DO?  
KARKAT: TAVROS IS THE ONLY HUMAN IN THE WHOLE WORLD?  
TEREZI: 4S F4R 4S YOU KNOW  
KARKAT: ...  
KARKAT: SO WHO’S VRISKA  
TEREZI: 1F YOU 3V3R BR1NG UP TH4T N4M3 4G41N 1 W1LL H4V3 TO GO B4CK TO MY PROM1S3 OF CUTT1NG OFF V4R1OUS L1MBS UNT1L 1 4M S4T1SF13D  
KARKAT: GOD OKAY, IT’S NOT LIKE YOU KEPT HER NAME A SECRET FROM ME  
TEREZI: W3LL NOW YOU KNOW  
KARKAT: FINE  
KARKAT: IF YOU HATE THE NAME SO MUCH THEN WHY ARE YOU USING IT AS AN ALIAS?  
TEREZI: 1 JUST N33D 4 N4M3 TH4T 1 DONT C4R3 1F MY SH3N4N1G4NS G3T 4SSOC14T3D W1TH  
KARKAT: HOW MANY SHENANIGANS DO YOU EVEN GET INTO  
TEREZI: S1X Y34RS WORTH OF SH3N4N1G4NS!  
KARKAT: JUST SIX?  
KARKAT: WERE YOU NICE AND QUIET AND CALM BEFORE THEN?  
TEREZI: NOT R34LLY  
TEREZI: NO ON3 R34LLY NOT1C3D WH4T 1 W4S DO1NG  
TEREZI: SO 1 D1DNT H4V3 TO US3 4N 4L14S B3C4US3 4S LONG 4S 1 W4S TORTUR1NG 4N1M4LS 1N TH3 FOR3ST TH3N NO ON3 COULD S33 4ND KNOW 1T W4S M3  
KARKAT: YOU TORTURED ANIMALS?  
TEREZI: FOR 4 WH1L3  
KARKAT: WHY  
TEREZI: 1 D1DNT UND3RST4ND D34TH V3RY W3LL, 4ND 1 D1DNT UND3RST4ND P41N 31TH3R  
TEREZI: 1 H4D NO S3NS3 OF R34L1SM, 3V3RYTH1NG W4S JUST 4 G4M3  
KARKAT: WOW  
TEREZI: MY FR13NDS W3R3 TH3 S4M3  
KARKAT: ...  
TEREZI: L1K3 FOL13 4 D3UX  
KARKAT: WAS TAVROS YOUR FRIEND THEN?  
TEREZI: Y3S  
TEREZI: BUT H3 D1DNT L1K3 DO1NG 1T  
TEREZI: H3 GOT BULL13D 1NTO COM1NG 4LONG W1TH US  
KARKAT: YEAH HE REALLY DID ON A 180 FROM TORTURING ANIMALS  
TEREZI: M4YB3 H3S TRY1NG TO M4K3 UP FOR 1T  
TEREZI: 1 DONT KNOW  
KARKAT: HOW DID YOU REALIZE YOUR WERE KILLING THINGS LIKE WHAT MADE YOU ALL STOP?  
TEREZI: P3OPL3  
KARKAT: WHAT?  
TEREZI: WH3N P3OPL3 D13, 1T 1SNT TH3 S4M3 4S 4N1M4LS  
KARKAT: YOU GUYS KILLED SOMEONE?  
TEREZI: SORT OF  
KARKAT: HOW DO YOU SORT OF KILL SOMEONE  
TEREZI: BY ST4ND1NG 4ROUND 4ND W4TCH1NG 1T H4PP3N  
KARKAT: ...  
KARKAT: WAS IT SOMEONE YOU KNEW? OR JUST A PERSON?  
TEREZI: 1 DONT KNOW TH3M 4NYMOR3  
TEREZI: WH4TS TH3 D1FF3R3NC3  
KARKAT: THERE’S A PRETTY CLEAR DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SOMEONE YOU KNEW AND SOMEONE YOU DIDN’T KNOW, EVEN IF YOU DON’T KNOW THEM ANYMORE  
TEREZI: 1T DO3SNT M4TT3R  
KARKAT: WHATEVER  
TEREZI: BUT DONT G3T M3 WRONG  
TEREZI: 1 DONT H4V3 4 COMPL3X 4BOUT D34TH  
TEREZI: 1V3 ST1LL K1LL3D M4NY S1NC3  
KARKAT: I KNOW, YOU INFORMED ME OF THAT WHEN YOU HAD YOUR SWORD TO MY THROAT  
TEREZI: GOOD  
TEREZI: 1 JUST DONT W4NT YOU TO FORG3T 4BOUT TH4T  
KARKAT: IT STILL HURTS SO I DON’T THINK I WILL ANY TIME SOON  
TEREZI: 1T DO3S?  
KARKAT: IT HAPPENED YESTERDAY AND IT’S MY THROAT  
KARKAT: EVERY TIME I BREATHE OR TALK I FEEL IT  
TEREZI: H3H3H3  
TEREZI: 3V3N MOR3 3V1D3NC3 TH4T 1M R1GHT  
KARKAT: THAT YOU’RE RIGHT ABOUT?  
TEREZI: 1TS GO1NG TO SC4R N1C3LY  
KARKAT: YOU REALLY WANT ME TO HAVE A BIG SCAR ON MY NECK FOREVER  
TEREZI: Y3S  
TEREZI: M4YB3 1 SHOULD H4V3 CUT 4LL TH3 W4Y ROUND  
TEREZI: L1K3 4 N1C3 L1TTL3 COLL4R  
KARKAT: WOW  
KARKAT: WELL THANK THE EIGHT FOR THE TROLL THEN  
TEREZI: 1TS OK4Y  
TEREZI: 1LL JUST M4K3 SUR3 TO DO 1T N3XT T1M3  
KARKAT: THERE’S NO WAY I’M GOING TO LET YOU THAT CLOSE TO MY THROAT AGAIN  
TEREZI: 1 DONT TH1NK YOU L3T SOM3ON3 CUT YOUR THRO4T K4RK4T  
TEREZI: TH3Y FORC3 TH31R W4Y THOUGH  
TEREZI: SO NO YOU PROB4BLY WONT L3T M3  
TEREZI: BUT 1LL G3T TH3R3 1F 1 W4NT TO G3T TH3R3  
KARKAT: WELL IT’S NOT GONNA HAPPEN  
TEREZI: DO YOU R34LLY W4NT TO S4Y TH4T 4ND H4V3 M3 TRY?  
KARKAT: WHY WOULD YOU TRY  
TEREZI: TO PROV3 YOU WRONG  
KARKAT: WOW  
TEREZI: WHO T4UGHT YOU 4LCH3MY?  
KARKAT: BOOKS  
TEREZI: WHO T4UGHT YOU TO R34D?  
KARKAT: ...  
KARKAT: MY DAD  
TEREZI: D1D H3 KNOW YOU COULDNT DO M4G1C?  
KARKAT: YEAH  
TEREZI: SO W4S 4LCH3MY H1S 1D34?  
KARKAT: NO, I CAME UP WITH IT  
TEREZI: YOU D1D?  
KARKAT: YEAH  
TEREZI: HOW OLD W3R3 YOU?  
KARKAT: EIGHT  
TEREZI: 1 S33  
TEREZI: H4V3 YOU B33N 4N 4LCH3M1ST LONG3R TH4N 4 TH13F?  
KARKAT: YEAH  
TEREZI: 1T SHOWS  
KARKAT: THAT’S MORE OF A CRITICISM OF MY THIEVING SKILLS THAN A COMPLIMENT ON MY ALCHEMIC ONES HUH  
TEREZI: 1 ONLY KNOW HOW TO G1V3 B4CK H4ND3D COMPL1M3NTS  
KARKAT: I GUESS I’LL TAKE WHAT I CAN GET  
TEREZI: W3LL W3 BOTH KNOW YOU 4LR34DY L1V3 BY TH4T MOTTO  
KARKAT: SIGH  
TEREZI: 1M SORRY D1D 1 S4Y SOM3TH1NG WRONG?  
KARKAT: NO  
KARKAT: I MEAN I DON’T SEE WHY YOU NEED TO BRING IT UP EVERY FIVE MINUTES BUT I GUESS IT’S IMPORTANT I KNOW MY PLACE  
TEREZI: 1 DONT L1K3 YOU  
TEREZI: 1 S33 NO R34SON TO HOLD MY TONGU3  
KARKAT: YEAH, WHATEVER, I’M USED TO THAT  
TEREZI: 4WW POOR K4RK4T  
KARKAT: GOD ARE WE AT MORTHAL YET?  
KARKAT: MAYBE I’LL DIE IN USTENGRAV AND I WON’T HAVE TO LISTEN TO YOUR VOICE ANYMORE  
TEREZI: 4T L34ST 1 C4N JUST L3T YOUR BODY ROT WH3R3 1T 1S  
KARKAT: I DON’T THINK THE NORDS WOULD LIKE THAT  
TEREZI: 4S 1F 4NYON3 WOULD 3V3R F1ND YOU DOWN TH3R3  
KARKAT: DON’T NORDS GO DOWN THERE TO PAY THEIR RESPECTS?  
TEREZI: 1 DONT TH1NK SO  
TEREZI: WHY WOULD 1 JUST G3T S3NT TO 4 S4F3 TOMB TH4T 4NYON3 C4N GO TO  
KARKAT: BECAUSE HE FOUNDED THE GREYBEARDS AND HE WAS A HERO OF THE VOICE AND TO PROVE YOUR WORTHY YOU HAVE TO GO GET HIS SHIT  
TEREZI: TH4TS TOO 34SY  
KARKAT: I’M NOT SAYING WE WON’T RUN IN TO TROUBLE BUT I DON’T THINK THEY WERE LIKE “THIS TOMB IS REALLY DANGEROUS, LET’S SEND THE DRAGONBORN HERE! MAYBE SHE’LL DIE HAHA”  
TEREZI: BUT B3FOR3 Y3ST3RD4Y TH3Y D1DNT KNOW 1 3X1ST3D  
TEREZI: TH4TS 4 LONG T1M3 TO W41T FOR 4 HORN  
KARKAT: I DON’T THINK THEY CARE ABOUT THE HORN LIKE THAT, IT’S JUST MORE LIKE... THEY KNOW IT’S THERE SO PROVE YOURSELF BY BRINGING IT BACK?  
KARKAT: NOT LIKE HEY WE REALLY NEED THIS HORN, BRING IT BACK AND WE’LL LET YOU INTO OUR CLUB  
TEREZI: 1 GU3SS W3LL KNOW WH3N W3 G3T TH3R3  
KARKAT: WELL  
KARKAT: I THINK WE’RE FINALLY IN MORTHAL? UNLESS WE’RE IN ANOTHER ICY FESTERING SWAMPLAND  
TEREZI: W3LL L3TS HOP3 TH4T N31TH3R OF US RUN 1NTO OUR FR13NDS  
KARKAT: AGREED  
TEREZI: 1 GU3SS W3 SHOULD F1ND SOM3WH3R3 TH4T S3LLS 4 BOW  
KARKAT: LET’S GO THEN  
TEREZI: OK4Y   


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> updating on my birthday like a pro ;)  
> as far as we're aware, there will never be a log this long again. or another log at all.


	9. morthal i

While a carriage surely sped things up significantly, the road to Morthal was long and frustrating. There were moments where Karkat thought that, in another life, perhaps he and Terezi would have been friends. There were also moments where he wished he was immoral enough to just kill her and leave without getting stuck on the fact that she was the guiding light for the future of this pathetic country. But instead, he stayed peaceful, and he listened to her talk and contributed his own information, admittedly eager to learn more about her and to try to figure out how far he could press before he pressed too hard and she snapped. He got more out of her than he expected, though—finding out her romantic past with TG, as well as some information on her childhood, and maybe he was starting to understand a little more why she was how she was. Not that humanizing his captor was necessarily the best idea, but it made things more interesting, at least.

But as previously stated, Morthal was a shithole, and a few walks around proved it relatively barren of most basic necessities. Absent was a general store, an armorer, a stable, a farm—even a marketplace, and to be honest, he wondered not only why anyone would ever want to live here, but how people even did. As much as he wanted a bow, he supposed there was some justice in not having to be indebted to Terezi for one, and he’d take what he could get. After their third lap around Morthal, hoping perhaps they’d missed every important building every time, Karkat sighed and admitted defeat, turning towards the Redguard with a scowl. “Okay, whatever, I probably don’t need a bow that much anyway,” he lied, not too crazy at all about going into a Nordic burial site without a long-range weapon in case they ran into bandits or necromancers or—even the Nord zombie creatures, Draugr, that he had often read of in his stories and hoped were fictitious. “Let’s just get out of this shithole and go get the horn out of the other one.”

Terezi was more worried about carefully making her way around the lake than she was the shops, scowling at the ground as she tried to make out the places where it was and wasn’t okay to walk. She couldn’t say she was surprised that there were no shops, but it made her careful effort almost wasted. “I guess you should just hope that your daggers are going to be enough,” Terezi hummed, interested about how this would work out. She didn’t exactly want to have to deal with Karkat dying, but what happened, happened. If it wasn’t detrimental to herself than she could probably save him. Probably. It was on their way to the ‘other shithole’ that Terezi noticed another Redguard, shorter and skinnier with hair that contrasted against her skin. “Oh no,” she muttered, able to pick out the Lalonde’s features from anywhere. “C’mon, let’s just go around the other side or something,” Terezi hissed at Karkat, hoping it wasn’t too late—but of course in a town that was empty with a population nearing zero, the two of them stuck out like a sore thumb.

"Terezi?" Rose called, and the former flinched from irritation.

"Rose," she smiled, all teeth and no long-lost affection. She could already see the ripples from the way Rose held her composure, moving towards them as if she was dainty and delicate: but Terezi knew better than that.

Karkat smirked, looking away slightly in hopes that no one would notice. He had sort of assumed they would be unlucky enough to run into one of them, but he’d been convinced it would be Kanaya, not the girl Terezi didn’t want to see. It would be interesting watching Terezi get ruffled up, and he’d be lying if he said he wasn’t looking forward to Terezi hating someone more than she hated him. Maybe. And so much for she’d tell her to fuck off and then ignore her—while there was certainly an edge to her voice, it was definitely not saying ‘fuck off,’ and Karkat would be happy to rub this small loss of hers in her face later, if he wasn’t concerned for his throat.

“I haven’t seen or heard from you in three years, and you turn up in Morthal? Could this be fate? I’ve never known such luck to come to me."

"Like no other," Terezi agreed, already sinking back into their passive aggressive snarking. Maybe if they got this done quickly then Rose would back off and Terezi could go about her business as if she’d never seen her.

"You’ve even brought a friend along," Rose noted, already trying to scrutinize him and his relationship to Terezi. "Rose Lalonde," she instead offered, knowing the importance of manners.

Karkat’s amusement only lasted so long—because soon, Rose was addressing him, and Terezi’s only plan (tell Rose to fuck off and leave) had fallen through and so he didn’t know exactly what the story here was, if he was supposed to lie like he had in Riften or if it was okay for Rose to know she was toting a prisoner/pack mule around Skyrim with her—but that didn’t mean he wasn’t going to enjoy himself. “Oh! You’re Rose,” Karkat smiled politely, looking over the Redguard curiously. “Terezi’s told me so much about you; she spent the whole carriage ride here talking about how she hoped to run into you in Morthal, since it’s been so long since you’ve seen each other. It’s nice to see the face that goes with the name now; oh, and my name is Karkat. It’s nice to finally meet you.”

Terezi would have rolled her eyes into the back of her socket if there had been any point, seeing as she was sure the effect would be lost on Karkat. He was certainly laying it on thick, and she was instantly regretting telling him about Rose. She wouldn’t be making a mistake with giving him information again—that was for sure. The worst part was that Rose obviously knew that Terezi’s enthusiasm for her had not been as such, giving Rose the pleasure of knowing that she’d been in Terezi’s thoughts.

"She has?" Rose turned to Terezi, eyebrow cocked—so much so that even Terezi could pick out the change in butter-flavoured hair. "Well then, it’s only fitting that I cordially invite you both back to catch up. After all, the last time we spoke your follower was a lot taller, and you yourself were shorter too."

"Well, it is common knowledge that people tend to grow as they reach maturity," Terezi strained a smile, unsure if she was more annoyed at Karkat or Rose. "Maybe that explains why you ended up shorter than me."

"As arbitrary with your tongue as ever—but my offer is sincere. While your travels are interesting to those who care for them, I am far more taken by my dear brother’s feats. The two of you look like you could do with some food, and Kanaya is most wonderful at cooking: you know of her, I assume?" Rose turned back to Karkat, smile flickering into something more amused as Terezi seemed to freeze with further annoyance. "If Terezi is so taken by my flights, then surely she’s mentioned Kanaya. Maybe she even mentioned Dave too? I suppose such things depend on the nature of your relationship."

Karkat ignored most of their banter, focusing his energy mostly on enjoying Terezi’s subtle frustrations—up until he heard the name Kanaya, and he felt his whole body tense up, barely managing to keep the surprise off his face as he turned to look at Rose. How did Rose know—well, granted, Morthal was a small town, and he supposed he should have attributed for the fact that they may know each other, but—and did that mean that Kanaya was the girl Terezi had mentioned, Kanaya was the girl who had taken pity on the Redguard? But that still didn’t explain why she assumed Karkat would know her, unless Kanaya had mentioned his name before? He should have used a fake one—but then Terezi would have grown suspicious and wondered why… brain working a mile a minute, Karkat almost missed Rose’s next words:  the answer to the question that had been absolutely torturing him.

"Yes," Karkat managed, forcing himself to relax. Maybe if Rose’s Kanaya was his Kanaya, it meant that she was safe from Terezi anyway, because she wouldn’t hurt someone important to Rose? But then again, Terezi had joked that she could kill Kanaya and Karkat could have Rose in return… "Well, she didn’t give me her name, but she did tell me you had someone special here," he smiled, faking a heartfelt smile towards his companion because, if Terezi hadn’t mentioned he was a captive thief yet and therefore let Rose assume they were together, they were probably going to go with that story. "And—she may have mentioned Dave," he started, pausing slightly as some gears connected—Rose’s appearance, along with a name for Jarl’s son’s boyfriend, and he was pretty sure that while Terezi didn’t know his connection in Whiterun, he might just know hers. "Assuming he’s the brother in Whiterun, I think I might have actually met him," he continued, silently hoping she didn’t have several of those.

"You’re always analyzing things that don’t need your input—my relationship with Karkat is one of those things." At least Rose’s assumptions would make things easier: provided he was smart enough to go along with them. Even if she wanted to turn down Rose’s offer, Terezi knew she couldn’t. She was obligated to Dave to go along, to check up on poor, pitiful Rose and then tell him whenever she next saw him—assuming she’d be able to see him again without risking Karkat somehow retaliating against her by using Dave; it wouldn’t hurt to be too careful. "But I can’t remember the last time we ate, so I suppose we shall have to see if your claims are as true as you would like everyone to believe."

It was amusing to dangle knowledge in front of Terezi, but the fact remained that Rose knew Kanaya and in a matter of moments, Terezi would know her too, and he was relieved that at least he hadn’t mentioned her name. He didn’t know how to protect her though—he just had to hope that it wouldn’t be too obvious they knew each other… somehow. Arguing that he wasn’t hungry to avoid the dinner with Rose and Kanaya would surely spark further suspicion from Terezi, No matter how fast his head worked, there still wasn’t a solution here—and so he reluctantly agreed that he was, indeed, hungry and in need of a good meal and followed the Redguards back to Rose’s home.

Ten times unhappier than she already had been, Terezi’s eyebrows furrowed from focusing on the floor and her thoughts. Her attention was instantly caught by colours against the backdrop of sweet roll icing—gaze flickering over what appeared to be a garden. At least the inside of their house was warm, and less of a hazard for slipping into the freezing water and drowning. “It seems Kanaya managed to decorate it well,” she begrudgingly approved, knowing that such handiwork couldn’t be the idea of Rose. Said Redguard seemed to smile: sappy pride for her girlfriend that Terezi really didn’t care for.

"I’ll make sure she knows our house is to your standards—and speaking of, excuse me for a moment."

For a moment Rose appeared to sink into the floor, before Terezi belatedly realized that there must have been stairs somewhere among the blurred lines of beef-brown. She wasn’t exactly sure why Rose was keeping her girlfriend in a cellar—but there was only one probable reason that left her stomach curling from secondhand anger. Rose’s issues aside, Terezi had to quickly deal with her own. She turned back to Karkat with another frown, trying to evaluate how to do this. She wasn’t really sure that calling Karkat her follower would work—what exactly was he good at, aside from alchemy? Plus, Terezi’s pride had never allowed for it. If she called him her follower then Rose would jump to conclusions anyway, but Terezi wasn’t sure if she could convincingly pretend that she wasn’t repulsed by the Dunmer. However, revealing her true intentions with Karkat was a no-go, leaving her stuck with choices. Trying not to sigh too loudly as she laced her fingers through his, she settled on hoping her acting was passable.

So distracted with his own issues, Karkat barely noticed that Terezi was nervously trying to figure out her own, and when she reached for his hand he nearly jumped, startled by the contact and instantly on the defensive as if she had tried to attack him. When her fingers laced with his own he realized what she was doing, surprised that she was so willing to make it look like they were a couple that she was willing to hold hands with criminal scum—but it was amusing nonetheless. Smirking, Karkat gave her hand what would have been a comforting squeeze, if they really were a couple, and he really was her boyfriend, aware of how Rose pushed all of Terezi’s buttons and frustrated her and now they had to get through a meal with her; but in this context, he was well aware it would only frustrate her further.

Terezi didn’t move when Karkat squeezed her hand, but her eyes started to narrow with brewing anger as she held her tongue. She instead squeezed his hand back twice as hard—silently threatening to attempt to break them next time he decided to act like an idiot.

The smirk fell as the thief heard the sound of footsteps on the creaky wooden staircase again, tensing up as he heard a second set following behind and praying to every Divine and Daedra alike that the Kanaya is Rose’s basement was not his Kanaya. Rose emerged first, and then her girlfriend followed a few steps behind, and Karkat couldn’t pretend it wasn’t his Kanaya anymore. He moved back a bit, not far enough to lose his grip on Terezi, but enough that he should be out of her eyeshot, and Rose’s, as she was still looking at her girlfriend, and he quickly gestured to her to keep quiet—she looked even more confused by the gesture than she had when their eyes had met a moment before, and he could only hope she would understand and go along with it. Or that Terezi would be compassionate for once in her life and leave her be—the first option seemed significantly more likely.

"It is a pleasure to meet Rose’s friends," Kanaya greeted, still thoroughly confused by Karkat but for his sake, she would keep quiet, even if she had no idea why. She frowned, looking over the visitors, eyes lingering over Karkat’s wounds for a moment too long before she forced a polite smile, moving a step closer to the blonde. "My name is Kanaya Maryam—if Rose mentioned your names, I am afraid I didn’t catch them." She cocked her head to the side, as if asking for their names through the gesture, and she was curious—what would Karkat even say, how far did this game of keeping quiet go? He rarely strayed so far from Riften, and never with a companion that he hadn’t mentioned to Kanaya first—every relationship the Dark Elf entered into involved him being prodded into it with the help of Kanaya’s encouragement, but he was holding hands with this Redguard that she knew nothing about and silently telling her to keep her mouth shut about knowing him; it didn’t sit right with her, and even if she was respectfully obeying him now, she would not remain silent on the matter forever.

"Terezi Pyrope," she offered, using the moment to break her contact with Karkat in a fluid motion, stepping away from him to offer her hand. Kanaya was taller than her, which made her almost appear a giant when compared against Karkat. It was closer that she could also inspect Kanaya, having trouble associating her smell to a race. Her eyes seemed to carry the same honey scent of the Altmer, but lacked the sweetroll-skin. It was completely confusing to Terezi, but it wasn’t as if she could ask. Maybe Karkat would tell her later, if she didn’t end up strangling him from frustration. "Sadly I have only heard of you through friends of friends—I never got to meet you properly in Whiterun."

"It’s quite all right," Kanaya replied, feeling a bit uncomfortable with how close the Redguard had moved to her—but she didn’t appear able to see perfectly anyway, and she hoped she wouldn’t look too obvious. "I wasn’t entirely sociable, anyway. Someone was taking all my attention for herself," she joked, giving Rose a fond smile while she played along. She was relieved when her hand was released, half because it meant putting some distance between them and half because she didn’t like this little Redguard, and she didn’t like playing nice with her. "And you?" she asked, looking to Karkat for some direction.

"Karkat," he murmured, only meeting her eyes for a moment before he looked away again. "It’s nice to meet you too." Her fists clenched nervously at the quiet tone of his voice, uncharacteristic of the loudmouthed Dark Elf she knew—and she didn’t miss the name he’d given either. She wondered if perhaps Terezi didn’t know his family name and he was trying to hide it, or if he didn’t want Rose to know, perhaps? More likely he was hiding it from Terezi, though. He certainly wasn’t himself and she didn’t like it. Shuffling uncomfortably for a moment, Kanaya looked to Rose again, before she recalled what the Redguard had told her when she arrived home. “Ah, that’s right. Rose promised you a meal, didn’t she?” She smiled politely at her guests for a moment before she reached for Rose’s wrist, tugging her along. “Help me in the kitchen,” she requested, eager to share her finds with her girlfriend in hopes that she could shed some light on the matter.

Rose tried not to cock her head with interest as Kanaya caught her wrist, unsure as to where this was headed. It wasn’t as if Kanaya needed Rose’s assistance in cooking, which probably meant the kitchen was not intended for it’s stated purpose. She briefly looked over Karkat and Terezi, trying to spot an obvious flaw or problem that she’d missed—but nothing apparent jumped out to her. Still, she trusted Kanaya’s judgement: sometimes more than her own. She smiled politely at their guests, before offering something a tad more reassuring in Kanaya’s direction.

"If you’ll excuse us again for a moment. I’m sure you’ll find the seats are perfectly fine for you to rest in while we prepare something."

Although she’d missed the first time, Terezi definitely noticed the second time that Rose looked at her: feeling like it wasn’t just a casual glance. It was also the second time that Karkat hadn’t given his surname—let alone the fact she’d never heard it in the first place. She couldn’t tell if he was keeping it from her, them or from everyone in general, but it didn’t sit right with her. Kanaya’s all but curt dismissal of Rose into the kitchen had Terezi cautious too, fingers drumming against her side as she tried to evaluate what had just happened. Had she said something wrong? Or had Kanaya seen something in her or Karkat that had her worried. “Something’s not right with her,” she muttered, unsure how to progress. It wasn’t like she could just leave Rose’s house, but it wasn’t like she could eavesdrop either. “Something’s not right with you either—but I’m more worried about her.”

"Nothing’s wrong with me," Karkat argued, nursing his hand once the girls were gone so they wouldn’t notice. "Maybe I’m just quietly recovering from a broken bone, did you ever think of that?" Huffing, he glanced towards the kitchen for a moment before he shrugged, trying to write off Terezi’s suspicious with a carefree attitude. "You’re just being paranoid because you don’t like Rose," he suggested, hoping maybe that would ruffle her feathers enough to get her off the scent. "Maybe she just doesn’t like Dark Elves—she didn’t seem weird until I spoke up and it wouldn’t be the first time a human didn’t like a Dark Elf."

"You know what I’m talking about, and if you hadn’t have been so shockingly uncouth in touching me then I wouldn’t have had to give you a warning." At least Karkat had agreed that something had been up with Kanaya, which meant she wasn’t going crazy or being too paranoid. Had it really been because Karkat was a Dark Elf? She didn’t think Rose could stomach a racist. "I don’t like Rose, but I’m not an idiot. Something spooked that girl. And I doubt it was my own features, seeing as hers appear pretty interesting to me. You haven’t stolen anything from her, have you?"

Karkat’s eyes narrowed near slits at the suggestion, probably more offended that Terezi had suggested he would steal from a friend when in reality she was only suggesting he had stolen from a friend of his captor. “No I didn’t steal anything,” Karkat snapped back, hackles raised from Terezi’s accusation. “I think I’ve learned by now not to do anything you find even moderately offensive in your presence at the very least,” he paused, tapping the bandage on his neck so she would understand what he was referring too. “I think stealing from the friend of the girl who nearly slit your throat sounds like a bad idea all around, doesn’t it? I don’t know what’s wrong with her, maybe she’s a nervous person—maybe she doesn’t like guests? Do you think Rose hosts guests often?”

"If you keep touching it, your neck will scar even worse," Terezi clicked her tongue, unbothered by Karkat’s whining when there were clearly bigger issues at hand. "She’s not my friend, and I don’t think she sees me as her friend either: which makes my paranoia a little more difficult to reason out into a game plan. I don’t think she’d hurt me, which means her girlfriend shouldn’t either—but I don’t know what just happened," she sighed, the sound more stressed than she’d allowed it to be before. She didn’t like being unable to work out people, and she certainly didn’t like knowing that the two had probably moved away to try and work her out in private.

Meanwhile, Kanaya’s grip on Rose didn’t falter until they were safely in the kitchen, which was fortunately a fair distance from the living room they’d left their guests in. She couldn’t hear whatever they were saying in there, so it was likely they wouldn’t hear her either, but she lowered her voice all the same, glancing towards the doorway anxiously. “Rose,” she started, trying to calm herself to keep from jumping to conclusions. “Rose, I know the boy your friend is with. I’ve mentioned him before—Karkat, remember? Well, you probably don’t if his introduction didn’t remind you, but,” she sighed, trying to keep her thoughts in order.

"Karkat doesn’t want me to say I know him, so I suppose it was fortunate you didn’t connect his name. But why would he say that? Have they said they’re together? I don’t trust her, I don’t trust that Terezi girl. What do you know about her?" she asked, pausing only to give Rose time to think about her question before she continued, her posture growing more tense as her worry shifted to anger and frustration. "He’s covered in wounds as well! But she doesn’t have any, and he’s being uncomfortably quiet; Karkat is never quiet—furthermore, Karkat never enters a relationship with a woman without counsel from me," she continued, realizing that sounded a bit strange but thundering on anyway. "He’s like a brother to me but and yet he doesn’t want me to say I know him? Surely it’s because he doesn’t want Terezi to know. I don’t know why—do you know why? If he is in danger, I am going to help him." She met Rose’s eye firmly, trying to convey the seriousness of the statement to her. "So, what do you know of Terezi?"

Although Rose was concerned by Kanaya, she tried to keep a calm composure as she listened to what her girlfriend had to say. She didn’t really have an answer for why Karkat didn’t want Kanaya to say that she knew him, unsure as to when such a request had occurred. Rose had also noticed Karkat’s wounds, but had assumed it had nothing to do with Terezi—after all, why would she be casually attacking the person she was travelling with? Domestic abuse? Even for the blind Redguard, that seemed a little extreme: she’d never hurt Dave outside of sparring. While Rose wasn’t sure if there really was something to be alarmed about between them, she was alarmed by Kanaya’s threat of a promise.

"Only what I knew of her three years ago. A borderline between socio’ and psychopathic, but it only ever really applied to those she labelled as ‘criminals’. She was pretty much harmless to Dave, although she doesn’t seem to hold much patience towards myself—probably due to the former. She’s mostly all bark but no bite: although that doesn’t make her barking any less of an annoyance," Rose tried to reassure, slightly amused by Kanaya’s attitude towards Terezi but mostly worried about Kanaya doing anything rash over a girl who probably wasn’t doing anything. "Unless—" She started, thoughts suddenly merging together. "Unless Karkat is still your criminal friend from Riften?" As soon as the words were out of her mouth, Rose knew she’d made a mistake in feeding Kanaya’s worries. "But from what I hear she’s never shown mercy on criminals. I can’t imagine her ever allowing one within ten feet of her—Terezi is insane about criminals but it isn’t as if Dave and I don’t know why. She wouldn’t bring Karkat around to torture him unless he had somehow been in Solitude six years ago. He’s probably mixed up with something else: maybe she’s even the reason his wounds aren’t any deeper," Rose tried to rationalize—not wanting her girlfriend to go after Terezi so suddenly. Rushing into things with a hot head wouldn’t help anyone, and as much as Rose wanted Karkat to be safe for Kanaya, she wanted Kanaya to be even safer. "But if he isn’t, then acting rash won’t help. They aren’t going anywhere if they’re here, why not take time to question them and work out what’s going on? Maybe I can even speak to Terezi privately so that you can speak to Karkat?"

As soon as Rose mentioned the girls tendencies with criminals Kanaya realized the missing dot she’d been unable to connect, waiting for Rose to catch up so that she would have more to go off of. If Rose’s means of reassurance fell in, ‘she’s never shown mercy to criminals before,’ then Kanaya was even more determined to get Karkat out of whatever situation he was in, but Rose was right on just about every account—acting rash wouldn’t help. Best case, Terezi would flee with Karkat and Kanaya wouldn’t be able to help him, and worst case, it would turn into a fight, and Kanaya could be discovered for what she was. Rose’s idea of speaking to them separately could work, perhaps. If she could get the other Redguard away from Karkat, at least, she could at least try to get him to tell her what was going on.

"I don’t believe Karkat could have been in Solitude six years ago," Kanaya murmured, silently counting back in her head. "He was in Riften then, in Honorhall. He couldn’t have been involved. But, Karkat knows how to treat his own wounds, I doubt he would need to rely on someone else to treat them for him, and I still don’t like the fact that he has wounds on his shoulder and his neck and Terezi is clean of them. His wounds look very recent as well—they smell rather strong," she admitted, looking off with some embarrassment that she had noticed such a thing. "I don’t know what he could have done aside from the things he has to do in Riften to upset her, but I think his career choice and her strange vendetta against crime are certainly related to his being with her. If he wanted to be with her, why would he not introduce me? This is not an arrangement Karkat chose," Kanaya finalized, letting out a slow breath through her nose. "If you will help me get them apart so we can talk, I would be very appreciative."

Stepping away from her girlfriend, Kanaya sighed, moving to the cabinet for some bowls for their guests. “I made some apple and cabbage soup for you earlier, it’s still on the fire,” Kanaya pointed out, taking one of the four bowls she’d removed and spooning some of the soup in. “If you could help me carry the bowls out that would be very helpful—I’ve only two hands to four mouths,” she joked, swapping the first bowl she’d filled for an empty one and filling it near the top. “If you could give that one to Karkat,” she murmured, nudging the fullest bowl towards the Redguard. “I imagine he is hungry but if I give it to him it may look more suspicious…” Sighing, she filled the rest of the bowls, taking one for herself and one for Rose in her hands while she waited for Rose to catch up before she headed out into the dining room to serve the meal.

"I didn’t think he would have been there either, which leads me to believe that his danger is not huge. Terezi doesn’t play with her food when it comes to criminals—I don’t see why she would torture your friend and then bring him up into Morthal where she knew she would run into me," Rose frowned again, unable to see the connection that Kanaya was making. "However, his injuries are strange, and if you say his behaviour is even stranger—then it is. I’ll certainly be able to get her apart from him, I doubt she has spoken to Dave in months; you’ll have more than enough time to talk to Karkat," Rose reassured, briefly touching reaching out to touch Kanaya’s hand before she pulled away. "Playing favourites with the soup; I see how it is," she smiled in return, making sure to balance Karkat’s meal with her dominant hand. It was endearing how much Kanaya was fussing over him, if one was able to ignore the context of why she was worrying so much.

Terezi’s worrying was faltered when the kitchen door opened again, and she quickly remembered Rose’s offer of chairs. Sitting down together probably would have looked a lot more natural, but it wasn’t as if they could do anything about it now. Such a small detail was probably going to go unnoticed anyway.

"Sorry to keep you both waiting," Rose apologized, head tilted towards the direction of a table. "It’s apple and cabbage soup—I assure you it tastes wonderful."

"I wouldn’t know," Terezi shrugged, taking a seat and eating a mouthful anyway. It wasn’t as if the soup could be poisoned to kill her—which was a slightly stupid idea in the first place, she scolded her imagination—but there was also no way that she could tell its original flavor. Kanaya could be the worst cook in the world and Terezi wouldn’t know the difference.

Karkat could tell now that this meal was going to be uncomfortable—with Terezi suspicious that something was up with Kanaya, Kanaya confused at why she had to remain silent, Karkat himself worried she would say something wrong and they’d be caught, and poor Rose who was either oblivious to all of it or caught in between. However, as the Redguard set down his bowl—carefully, because if she tipped the bowl off balance even slightly, his massive helping of soup would have spilled, Karkat noticed that not everyone had as much soup as he did. It was obvious after half a second of thought that it was Kanaya’s doing, she was always fussing over him like he was a child. Which, to be honest, was nice—he was hungry, and he could use the extra soup, but he hoped it wouldn’t be obvious enough for Terezi to notice.

The Imperial didn’t start eating until Karkat did, wanting to make absolutely certain that he was going to eat, and then she started on her own meal. Human food had long since lost it’s taste to her, remarkably bland and tasteless, especially if it was meatless, like the soup that she’d made specifically for Rose. There was nothing she could do about it now, though—like it or not, she couldn’t add in some venison for flavor, and if she didn’t eat along with everyone else, she would look suspicious. Pausing, Kanaya looked over to the two travelers, slowly stirring the ingredients around the bowl and watching the steam rise as she tried to work out how to gather information without coming off as prying. “So, what brings you two to Morthal?” she asked, tilting her head to the side curiously. “I assume you don’t live nearby or I would have met you sooner, Terezi, as a friend of Rose’s.” She was aware now that that wasn’t the case, but if she made that clear, it would be obvious she and Rose had privately discussed Terezi. “Surely the two of you didn’t travel all the way here just to see an old friend?”

Terezi tried to keep her attention on Kanaya, but it was rather hard to make out the bowl against the soup and table while simultaneously checking the blur across from her for any signs of trouble. It was a fruitless effort when doing both, but at least her vision could settle enough when she focused on Kanaya alone. But while she could get a feel for Kanaya’s posture, she couldn’t pick up on facial expressions—making it hard to ascertain if anything had prompted her questions. It was probably best to answer them cautiously anyway, and before Karkat thought to answer them instead. She wasn’t sure what his lying skills were like, but Terezi knew from experience that lying was never a good option—omission was much smarter.

"I don’t really live anywhere, but yeah, Morthal wasn’t exactly my choice," Terezi laughed, stalling for an extra few seconds as she took another mouthful of soup. "We’re here on business I suppose; there’s something we have to go retrieve." She wasn’t exactly content on telling Rose and Kanaya the specifics of their retrieval: after all, Rose didn’t need to know that she was Dragonborn, even if it would have been good to rub in her face. "But before that, Karkat needed a new bow—he’s kind of a walking testament on how not to fight without one," she managed to joke, giving the impression of sincerely smiling at him. "Only Morthal is completely empty, so we were giving up on the idea when we ran into Rose." Although she’d joked about his injuries, Terezi wasn’t exactly sure how severe they were. She knew his neck-wound would be fine if he’d stop touching it every time he felt the need to remind her of it—which was only further encouraging her to do it again—but his shoulder was another issue. Would he even be able to fire a bow if it was deep? She supposed it depended on his dominant hand, his archery skills and his alchemy skills in the first place. At least that injury wasn’t strictly her fault, so he couldn’t keep bitching about her for that: although she had no doubt that he would.

"Hm," Kanaya murmured, offering little in response for a moment while she dutifully swallowed more of her own unbearable cooking. She didn’t like the tone Terezi used while she spoke of Karkat’s injuries. The wound on his shoulder looked big and risk of infection was no laughing matter, and while she couldn’t see the wound on his neck, it’s location in general was enough to make her uncomfortable. "Do neither of you know how to do restoration magic?" she offered, lifting an eyebrow at them. "Most human races find magic abhorrent but I don’t believe that’s the case with Redguards? And I’ve never heard of an elf that couldn’t heal themselves," she added, already aware of Karkat’s aptitude for magic but not wanting to appear as if she knew.

Karkat himself wasn’t aware of Terezi’s magical abilities—only that he doubted she had very many talents in the field due to the fact that he’d never seen her cast a spell. Still, he was a bit annoyed with Kanaya’s question; he knew she was playing it like she didn’t know him but it wasn’t exactly the type of thing Karkat liked telling people, either. “Dunmer excel at destruction magic, not restoration,” Karkat managed, careful to specify that he meant his race’s abilities as a whole, and not just his own. “I’m no good at those spells.”

Gold eyes lingering over Karkat’s wound for a moment, Kanaya turned them on Terezi again, no longer feeling the need to offer a smile while she asked questions. “Do you not know restoration magic either, Terezi? I have to say, I wouldn’t feel very safe traveling with two people who can’t heal themselves when they need it. The way Nords insist on healing is so slow, don’t you think? What would happen if both of you got hurt?”

Terezi completely turned her attention away from the soup as her grip tightened on the spoon, trying not to glower at Kanaya as the woman kept speaking. Sure Redguards liked destruction magic, but Terezi hadn’t touched that in six years—they weren’t exactly known for being great healers either, and Terezi herself wasn’t good enough to be able to do anything without concentration. She’d been too exhausted to even think about offering it, and she wasn’t sure if Karkat would trust her enough to do it either. Her teeth gritted slightly as Kanaya brought up Karkat’s abilities, not sure why it irked her: but he defend himself fine, so she supposed there was nothing to really get worked up over. Still, Kanaya kept talking and by the end of it, Terezi felt like she was five. She’d been getting injured and healed even before she was orphaned, and had managed to survive just fine without Kanaya’s ‘concern’.

"Not that I don’t find your concern touching—but seeing as we’ve only just met, don’t you think it’s a little rude to pry into people’s abilities? We’re handling it as best we can," Terezi frowned, not liking the tone that Kanaya was taking with her. She certainly didn’t like people being condescending towards her, and even Kanaya’s tone towards Karkat was starting to brush against her the wrong way. "We haven’t stopped travelling since he got the injury, and Rose will probably be more than happy to fill you in on my abilities in magic. I’m not going to risk injuring him further when he’s more than adept at handling his wounds until I can securely offer my own abilities."

"Again, your concern is appreciated but it’s business between myself and Karkat," Terezi finished, almost finalizing how much further she was willing to discuss it with Kanaya. Why was she pushing his injuries so much anyway? Even Terezi knew basic manners and it didn’t involve bringing up stranger’s misfortunes. Of course his neck wound hadn’t been natural, but his shoulder had been and Karkat seemed at least somewhat prideful from the short time they’d spend together: bringing up his injury was just rude.

Karkat paid more mind to his soup than his company; he was so hungry and this stew was so good. But the table talk wasn’t that easy to ignore either, sadly, with Terezi and Kanaya snapping at each other mostly entirely over Karkat’s condition and he hoped that Terezi wasn’t picking up on that, at least. It was a little annoying to learn here, now, over dinner, that Terezi was actually capable of basic restoration magic but he supposed in the long run, he shouldn’t be surprised. Why should she waste her magicka on a criminal, anyway? Maybe she’d hoped he’d die of infection or something.

Terezi’s answers were not satisfactory to Kanaya—she was worried about injuring him further with restoration magic? It sounded like an excuse to her. If, perhaps, Terezi only knew basic spells and could perform healing but didn’t know healing hands, that would be a fair excuse. And an easily fixable problem, as well, as she was fairly certain they had that spell book lying around somewhere for Terezi to use. While she couldn’t argue that Karkat was all right at handling his own wounds, she didn’t agree that patching up a wound with some salve on it was equal to a healing spell. Still, pressing further was only making the Redguard angry and herself seem suspicious, so she would let it go, for the moment.

"We may have only just met, but you are friends of Rose’s, and that makes you friends of mine, as well. I apologize for prying; that was not my intention. I simply care about my friends," Kanaya replied, barely managing to keep the hard edge out of her voice on the last sentence. Giving Terezi one last look, she returned to making progress on her stew and wishing she hadn’t filled their bowls so high—waiting for them to finish eating so that Rose could pull Terezi away from Karkat was exhausting.

Feeling even more patronized throughout Kanaya’s apology, it was difficult for Terezi not to be hostile. She tried to bite her tongue long enough to come up with something cutting in reply, but she was still too busy trying to work out what she’d done to offend the woman. Was she so far mastered in the arts of healing that seeing a wound that wasn’t 100% treated every second of the day was simply too much for her? Terezi didn’t understand the fixation on Karkat, and her reasoning of ‘friends of friends’ seemed a little watery to the Redguard.

"Terezi," Rose began, standing in order to catch her attention and possibly move things along a little quicker before the two other women started fighting. She was glad when the other Redguard moved to follow her, the two of them standing while Kanaya and Karkat remained seated. Terezi instantly had a problem with this, staring at Kanaya as if to silently ask why she wasn’t standing too. "I’d like to speak with you privately, if that’s quite alright."

Terezi moved her attention from Kanaya to Rose, sizing the two of them up. She didn’t like where this conversation had gone, and she didn’t like how Kanaya had pried into hers and Karkat’s business. Private obviously meant without Karkat, and she wasn’t sure that she trusted Kanaya with him. She made a motion to move, but closer to Karkat—hand possessively, and maybe slightly protectively, resting on his shoulder. “About what?”

Rose hadn’t anticipated Terezi becoming defensive over her proposal, but she supposed that Kanaya had pushed enough and Terezi had reacted, making Rose’s life more difficult. “Issues that I think are best discussed with privacy.”

"I gathered as much from when you said ‘talk in private’. Contrary to the popular belief that seems to be among you two, I’m not an idiot. What do you explicitly want to discuss?"

Rose smiled rather painfully, not bothering to object against Terezi’s anger. It was easier just to go along with her, and not try and make her feel like they were purposely making her feel stupid. If there was one thing she knew would be the clincher, it was always—“Dave.”

Terezi’s eyes narrowed again at Dave’s name, unmoving from her position with Karkat. “I don’t know what you have to tell me in private about Dave, I received a letter from him yesterday and he was just fine. Unless you want to privy into my personal life there? Perhaps whether I was adequate in healing his wounds?” She grounded out, fingers unconsciously gripping Karkat a little harder. “I told you that we were here to get a bow, and there was no bow. I have eaten with you out of formality and politeness, but I feel we’ve overstayed our welcome. We’re due at Ustengrav, which is a fair distance to be leaving so late if we’re going to make progress.”

Terezi’s defensiveness surprised Karkat, almost as much as the hand on his shoulder did—it didn’t feel like something she had done for the sake of her act with Rose either, and he turned his full attention to the Redguards. Obviously Kanaya’s prying had made for a less willing Terezi, and while he wasn’t sure if Rose genuinely wanted to talk about her brother with Terezi or it was part of Kanaya’s attempts to separate them, it didn’t look like the Dragonborn was having it anyway. As her fingers clenched on his shoulder he got to his feet as well, shrugging out of her grip and leaning to put a hand her shoulder, one that wasn’t going to crush her shoulder blade of her one remaining good shoulder. “Relax,” he murmured, glancing nervously between the girls—at least Rose seemed calm enough, a nice contrast to Kanaya and Terezi.

"Ustengrav, was it?" Kanaya spoke up, rising from her seat as well. "I know exactly where that is, actually; and as it is getting a bit late, I imagine a guide would be helpful." She smiled, gold eyes lingering on the contact between the two of them, wondering if Karkat was a good actor or if she’d read things wrong, but she wasn’t going to leave him to her machinations until she knew for sure. "There’s many Nordic tombs in the area, and if you’re unfamiliar with it, you could easily end up pillaging the wrong one."

She leaned over the table, stacking the plates up regardless of how finished with their stew everyone was—although it seemed Terezi was no longer hungry anyway, which meant that Karkat was finished as well. It would be simple to carry them to the kitchen to be cleaned now, but that could wait as she didn’t want her guests to wander off without her. “In addition to my knowledge of the area, I am rather handy with destruction magic, and if you fight with a sword and Karkat does not have a bow, I could easily provide the long-range attacks that you two both lack the ability to do. The only sensible solution here is for me to assist you, and luckily I am free; do not worry about whatever it is you are trying to collect from the tomb, I’m not looking for a share. But I do like adventure, and it sounds like this is going to be quite fun.” She smiled politely, clasping her hands together. “We should be going soon then, yes?”

Terezi begrudgingly listened to Karkat as she felt the contact on her shoulder, trying not to flinch from it. She simmered down slightly, huffing a breath from between her teeth as she tried to do as she’d said. Even if she wasn’t internally happy about Karkat telling her what to do—and she wasn’t sure if she liked his hand on her shoulder, but she’d touched him first—he was making sense. Her pride was getting in the way of what was important, and that was trying to work out what Rose and Kanaya were doing, without getting worked up about it. She didn’t want to risk her own, and now Karkat’s, safety because her emotions were flaring up over some petty jabs. She was better than that, and she knew it. Only it was a little hard to remember that when Kanaya started talking, and Terezi tensed up all over again. She didn’t even think that Kanaya was trying to be courteous anymore, just acting like a stuck-up brat: which was exactly what she thought of Rose, so how she hadn’t figured that in the first place was ridiculous in hindsight. She watched in silence as Kanaya started collecting the dishes, unsure if she was being told that the woman was coming along instead of being offered her services.

"You seem awfully excited for ‘pillaging a Nordic temple’," she noted, distrust evident in her voice as she made no attempt to disguise it. "As you’ve noted the two of us aren’t the best at healing because the ‘way Nords insist on healing is so slow’," Terezi frowned even further, able to pick out contradictions now that she was calmer. "And you said yourself that you wouldn’t feel very safe traveling with two people who can’t heal themselves when they need it. So with this in mind, why do you care so much? It doesn’t make sense. You don’t want treasure, but yet you’re concerned as friends as Rose’s? Only I don’t think we’re coming across as friends here, at all. Why would I willingly let you accompany me when we clearly don’t see eye to eye, and I have no idea of your intentions—with me or, more worryingly, Karkat."

Rose didn’t need her seer abilities to be able to see where this conversation was heading again, and she tried to take a more firmer approach than Karkat had. It was evidently important that Kanaya wanted to go with them, but at the same time it was important that Terezi didn’t become so paranoid that she all but leapt over the table and started a brawl. “Because her reasoning makes sense: you can’t fight long range, it’s facts. Kanaya can, and well, we live in Morthal—nothing of much interest happens here. Kanaya enjoys adventuring, and I prefer books: it’s only natural she’d want a chance to get out of the house and further than the lake. You’re being too paranoid of her, and our, good intentions. Do you think I would lure you into my house and plot for my girlfriend to kill you or your companion? We could have been kin, Terezi; you may not like me but I owe you, and I owe Dave more. I understand your concerns for yourself and Karkat, as Kanaya and I would be the same with one another, but you’re not in danger. Now if both sides are done squabbling, we should make haste,” she firmly smiled, bringing the conversation to an end yet doing nothing to quell the tension. She just had to hope that things would simmer patiently instead of boil over in a rush.


	10. ustengrav i

Rose had managed to talk enough sense that arguing became pointless, and soon their traveling party was plus two, because naturally when Kanaya forced herself on them, Rose had wanted to come along too. The prospect of more back-up was a welcomed one, but he had hoped that he and Kanaya would go their separate ways so that her safety could be assured. After all, it wasn’t as if Kanaya could change the situation of things, and he wished he could get a moment alone with her to tell her things were fine and she didn’t have to do this—but doing so would make the truth of everything crystal clear to Terezi, and he didn’t know if anyone would survive her wrath after that. He would just have to hope once they were through here, Kanaya believed he was safe enough to let go, and he could write a prompt letter to inform her that he was all right and she didn’t need to involve herself further. Until then though, he would have to focus on keeping the Imperial and Redguard from killing each other. At least Rose was still calm—one small mercy on the tired Dunmer. The walk to Ustengrav wasn’t long, but he expected that was partially thanks to the guidance of the girls, and though the sun was setting when they arrived, Karkat couldn’t help but wish it had taken longer. Going into the depths of a tomb was not how he wanted to spend his evening in the slightest, and he was more thankful now for Kanaya’s stew, as it might well be the last meal he ever ate.

They only made it a few steps inside before the sound of fighting hit their ears, and a peek around a rock made the exact source of the fighting clear—the burial site was not empty, and this task was not going to be as simple as Karkat hoped. There were bedrolls and cooking spits lying about, and not far from the makeshift camp, the bandits who likely lived there were fighting against cloaked foes, foes who looked to be doing magic. When one bandit fell to the mage, their school of specialty became clear, the bandit rising back to his feet and turning on his companions. Karkat felt his blood run cold as he realized he was witnesses necromancy, one of the most heinous crimes by Dunmer standards, that anyone could commit. The living bandit felled one of the mages, but his dead peer made short work of him. And then the corpse fell again, this time into dust, and the Dark Elf’s stomach turned at what was left of the corpse. More than likely, the bandits didn’t deserve an honorable death, but he could think of few people who deserved that. The remaining necromancer didn’t hang about, quickly pivoting away from the mouth of the cave and down the hall once it was clear that there were no remaining foes.

"By Oblivion," he breathed, glad when the display was over but less than glad that they would have to proceed regardless. He looked to Terezi, shaking his head at his misfortunate yet again, because no matter what was going on around him, he would always find time to be upset about his current prisoner status and the mental state of his captor. "This thing they want better be really fucking important," Karkat hissed to her, stepping around the rocks they’d used as cover and inspecting the battlefield, taking a nervous glance down the path the necromancer had disappeared down just in case. Gingerly, he picked up something the bandit-turned-pile-of-dust would no longer need, hesitantly brushing some stray dust from the wood. "He’s not gonna need it anymore," he sighed, lightly tugging the string to see how well the tension was—seemed all right, workable. Now as long as he could find some arrows, maybe he could be of some use here.

To say that Ustengrav was a hindrance to all of Terezi’s abilities was a bit of an understatement. She didn’t like places that were dimly lit, because it meant there was nothing for her to smell, and adding lighting to the area just ended up making everything yellow instead. It wasn’t like she could speak up and complain about it, so she made sure to pay more attention to what the other three were doing, rather than the actual surroundings. They didn’t manage to get far before they stopped, and Terezi curiously tried to work out what was happening—aside from an obvious battle. Even without perfect sight, she could make out the workings of necromancy. She wasn’t sure how she felt about it, used to animals and such being revived, but not actual people. She guessed that in blunt honesty, she didn’t really care. They were both criminals, only one was now vaporized through another criminal’s acts. Her mind briefly wandered to Aradia, but stopped quickly—there were more important things to think about.

Apparently the necromancy had been more unappealing to those with vision—seeing as Karkat was already complaining and Rose seemed rather tense. She carefully inspected the ashes: the pile bigger than she’d seen from her childhood. Terezi didn’t comment on Karkat taking the bow, mostly because she didn’t particularly care about him taking items off of a dead criminal, but also because it was evident that things weren’t looking so great for close combat. “Maybe there’s some actual bodies that you can grab some arrows from,” she suggested while grinning at him and stepping away from the ashes.

It quickly became clear to Karkat that Terezi was as good as blind here—it was too dark for her to make things out normally and carrying a torch would bring attention to the party, not that he was sure it would actually help her see, though. As such, he tried to keep close to her, only breaking away when he spotted a stray arrow to add to his slowly growing collection.

Ignoring anything that could be considered loot, Terezi made her way through the first chamber, hitting a short flight of stairs before she paused to look at something. There was a body on the floor, but it was different to the rest. She tilted her head in puzzlement, trying to get a better smell of its features. “Is that a skeleton... in clothes...” she squinted, unsure if the necromancers had a dark sense of humour or a perverse sense of modesty.

"It’s a Draugr; undead Nordic warriors. They’re said to defend their chambers, and they are usually very much alive and very much ready to fight. Those necromancers probably killed it, but I wouldn’t doubt that there will be more the further we go," Rose explained, used to being the literary translator of knowledge.

The Draugr itself was a strange, grotesque sight that made Karkat a bit uneasy, grimacing over its sunken skin and nearly skeletal face before he pointedly looked away, no longer wanting to see it. Rose’s information on the Draugr was good to know, but it confirmed that one thing he’d been hoping were just mad Nordic falsehoods—the dead would rise to protect their tombs. Were Kanaya and Rose not present, Karkat surely would have been complaining even more about the things Terezi was forcing him to do—raid a crypt and kill all the zombies defending their home so they could take a horn to the Greybeards, who probably didn’t even urgently need the horn and were just making it out as some sort of test for her. But among present company, the idea would be foolish, and he kept his mouth shut and stayed close to the Dragonborn.

In turn, Terezi pulled a face, but wasn’t worried enough to leave. She couldn’t fight a necromancer, but she could fight a Nord. Surely they couldn’t be any stronger in death, although it felt sacrilegious to have to defeat them when they were the ones clearly trespassing. Finished with looking at the body, Terezi pressed onwards another three paces before there was a loud noise, like a sharp growl but nothing like an animal she’d ever heard.

"Is that Draugr too?" She whispered, moving back away from the source of the noise.

The sound startled Karkat, his fingers clenching on the bow he was still holding as he turned to face the noise, and when Terezi stepped away, he moved in front of her. “Everyone get down—so we’re harder to spot,” he explained, already well-versed on the way of stealth himself, though he was unsure of everyone else’s abilities. Although, to her credit, Terezi had certainly used stealth well when she’d captured him in the first place. As a Draugr came into sight, slowly, as it had no idea where the group of the were, Karkat drew his bow back, wincing as it put strain on his shoulder but doing his best to ignore it. He quickly nocked the arrow, took a quick moment to aim and loosed it, tensing involuntarily as it hit the Draugr. The arrow got him in square the chest, and the Draugr fell to the ground, defeated, a heavy breath of relief falling from Karkat at still being able to properly handle a bow despite his injuries.

But they weren’t out of the water yet—the second Draugr had heard and likely seen the first die, and it walked into the room quickly, well aware that someone in the room had killed its fallen companion. Karkat’s aim wasn’t quick enough for the speed this one was moving, and he reached for his daggers instead, but he didn’t have the chance to fight it up close—there was a familiar hissing behind him, one that he hadn’t properly heard since his days in The Grey Quarter, watching his best friend do things he couldn’t—the sound of charging magicka. And just as he looked to see if it was Kanaya or Rose, the Imperial launched her spell, sending an ice spike straight through the Draugr, felling him as well. It was quiet after that, and it seemed like they wouldn’t have to deal with any more Draugrs, for the moment at least.

"You see," Kanaya breathed, just as relieved to see Draugrs dead as the two who were fighting them for the first time. "It’s dangerous down here, and long-range goes a long way. Four heads are better than two, don’t you think?" she asked, the mocking tone gone from her voice now that the four of them were in real danger. She still didn’t trust Terezi, and she was sure Terezi didn’t trust her, either, but she knew she could trust Rose and she knew she could trust Karkat, and that would be enough for Ustengrav.

Apparently Terezi hadn’t given Karkat enough credit, because he had a quick aim and a clear shot. If anything, she was impressed by him—and it was almost sad to acknowledge, because he had potential but he’d invested it into the wrong place. Still, that small moment of admiration bubbled into something longer as she shifted towards his good shoulder, briefly using it as leverage to get closer to his ear. “Good shot,” she whispered to him before quickly moving away from him completely—almost as if she’d never done it in the first place. She silently seethed at Kanaya’s words, finding them patronizing—especially when she was more than aware that she wasn’t being overly helpful to the group. At least now she had a slight idea of their movement and size; there had been a glare of juniper berries, just enough to track them so that she’d be able to fight them herself next time.

And so the next time they fought, she managed to do just that—concentrating on the glow to locate them while maneuvering around its attacks as best as she could. Even if she was being too risky by fighting them head on, it felt good to be useful. She liked the adrenaline, and while her hits sometimes lacked strength and a quick strike, she managed to make up for her accuracy by keeping fast on her feet and biding her time. It was only when the lighting was too dark or blocked from view that she faltered, stumbling with injuries that were almost scrapes in comparison to what could have been a missing limb. She’d slowly healed her injuries between fights, all but hissing when Kanaya commented on it. Still, she remained subdued when Karkat calmed her again—and she told herself it was because of appearances and reasoning over any indication that she actually liked him.

While the enemies didn’t prove as challenging to defeat as Karkat had first assumed they would, getting through the crypt was no simple matter. Things were fine when he and Kanaya could handle them with a well-aimed strike from an arrow and an ice bolt, but more challenging when he had to switch to his small daggers in close combat. But what was more difficult was trying to watch over Terezi, though if he was honest, she seemed to be fairing all right with the Draugr. Still, the whole crypt was a mess of peacekeeping between Terezi and Kanaya, and he wished Rose would step in for some interference—it was a little much to handle on his own.

As their exploration led them further out through the initial tomb and down into forest, Terezi found herself able to see better. It was misty, but it was better than being in almost darkness. It was through the clarity of colours that she managed to pick out another flash of juniper berries, but this time bigger and stronger. She tensed from worry that a huge enemy was coming, but nothing came—and as she stepped closer, she thought she could hear something: as if her paranoia had manifested into auditory hallucinations. But the closer they got, the more she realized that the glow was shaped, and coming from a wall. “Is that..?” She trailed off, stepping even closer to it.

Karkat was relieved when it widened out into a grotto—all the thin, elevated walkways were no place for a near-blind girl. Not to mention, it was an amazing sight to see a small bit of forest growing, breathing and living inside the depths of a tomb. He quickly became distracted with gathering what alchemic ingredients he could find, mostly toadstools and torchbugs. He didn’t notice the wall until Terezi spoke, unable to hear its whispers the way the Dragonborn could, but once she drew his attention to it he hurried to join her, lips parting slightly as he marveled over something he had only read about and never expected to see.

"By the Eight," he breathed, letting his hand rest on the cool near the very edge of the wall, eyes tracing over the glowing word in the center in awe. "It’s a word wall. Holy shit, we found a word wall." He smiled, excitedly looking between the Dragonborn and the ancient glowing letters as if hoping to learn to read them by sheer willpower alone. "Can you read it? Do you know what it says?" he paused, watching how the wall brightened and seemed to pulsate as she drew closer to it. "Do you think it’s a shout?" he suggested quietly, only then remembering the present company did not know of Terezi’s gift—but they couldn’t afford to walk away from the word walls of her favorite book just for the sake of keeping this a secret; Rose was Terezi’s friend, even if in a roundabout way, surely she would hold her tongue. And Kanaya would too, if he asked it of her. He didn’t want their presence to impede the discovery they’d made here. "Maybe, try touching it," he murmured, watching the wall very carefully.

Karkat’s excitement passed off onto Terezi, who regarded the wall with even more attention. Everything she’d been brought up to pass off as legends were true, and it was almost overwhelming to know so much in such a short span of time: but she was adaptable, and a little too focused on Karkat and the wall anyway. She tried to read what was there, but her vision was too hazy to work it out—slightly annoying her when she almost wanted to give Karkat the answers, because at least the two of them both shared a thirst for the knowledge. Then he suggested touching it instead, and Terezi considered the merits of doing so.

"What if it burns?" She hesitated, before realizing what a stupid question it was. Brushing off her idiocy, Terezi stepped closer to try Karkat’s suggestion, still mildly cautious despite her self-assurances.

Karkat braced himself as she moved to touch the wall, unsure what to expect—and while he didn’t think the wall would burn her, he wasn’t sure what would happen. Still, he started at the bright light that surged from the marking on the wall and into Terezi, breath falling out of him as he watched, and remembered the way the light had poured from the dragon to Teri before. And once it was over she knew what it meant, as if the light had brought to her knowledge, which he supposed it must have done.

She didn’t even manage to brush her hands against the stone before she was blinded, vision tunneling into a mass of white and blue as the chanting reached an even louder feat. Just as suddenly, it all washed away again—almost reminiscent of when she’d first learnt of her status. "Feim," she turned back to Karkat, able to make out his form a little better now that the glowing had stopped. "Fade."

The small panic of adrenaline had her smiling with relief, and maybe some more childish excitement from the whole thing. Even if she had no right to, there was a brief second where she felt calm, and almost friendly in Karkat’s presence. “The glowing is getting a little inconvenient,” she laughed, happy enough being caught up in the moment—but then her vision moved past Karkat, falling onto Rose and Kanaya. Her expression hardened again, unsure where to begin with what had just happened.

He wasn’t sure if the light was enough evidence for what she was, but Terezi didn’t bother to inform the curious and dazed looking females, simply turning from the wall and continuing into the crypt, and Karkat didn’t think it was his place to share what Terezi was if she wasn’t going to herself. Besides, as far as she knew, he barely knew Kanaya, so filling in their temporary followers would just seem strange. Sighing, Karkat disregarded the matter, simply turning to follow Terezi and glancing back to confirm that the girls were following.

They didn’t get far from the wall before they were stopped again, only walking up and over the grotto—Karkat watching Terezi very carefully as they made their way over the bridge—and then there were just three tall stones, and a gate. Frowning, Karkat stepped ahead to investigate, meaning to look for a chain or lever to open the door—but as soon as he stepped near the first stone, it lit up red, and he froze, automatically expecting something bad to happen. When nothing did, he relaxed, curiously moving towards the next stone and noting that it too lit up when he moved close, but the previous one went out. The others moved to inspect the puzzle as well, and it quickly became evident that the gate opened when all three stones were lit, but that only one person would be able to get through. Karkat was well aware that Terezi wasn’t going to let the two of them be separated, and he doubted Kanaya would be willing to be separated from Rose or himself as well. Frowning at the gate, Karkat looked back towards the others. “What do we do now?” he asked, red eyes flitting between the three of them.

Puzzles weren’t exactly something unexpected, but they were definitely a hindrance to the plan. Terezi stepped forwards carefully, unable to clearly see what Karkat was inspecting. Even if the stones were unclear, their glow of snowberries wasn’t, and her breath faltered for a moment at the apprehension of whatever was to come. Luckily, nothing did, and she was torn between chastising Karkat for being so careless around danger, or keeping quiet against the backdrop of Rose and Kanaya. The latter instinct to remain impassive around the women won out, and she didn’t say anything—instead watching with reduced tension as Karkat moved from stone to stone. It quickly became clear what the purpose of the stones were, and in the same moment, it became clear just who would have to deal with the puzzle. She shifted her focus to Kanaya and Rose, watching the women meet the same conclusion as her.

"Why doesn’t Terezi go through?" Kanaya suggested, trying to keep a smile off her lips at how this was playing out. "It is her quest, is it not? We are in the tomb of a man who was famous for his Voice, and she must have some connection to the Voice as well," she stated carefully, glancing towards who she was almost sure was the Dragonborn but deciding not to press her luck too far. "We will be happy to wait here for you to return, or perhaps on the other side of the gate there is a lever? But only one of us can get through, correct? It makes the most sense for it to be Terezi."

She didn’t speak as Kanaya prompted her, instead surveying the scene closely. She couldn’t think of a feasible alternative, but that didn’t mean she was happy with the current predicament either. At this point, she was more worried about her trust in Kanaya than her trust in Karkat. The idea of turning her back on the woman wasn’t appealing, and neither was the unknown beyond the gate. Still, it didn’t matter how great her problem solving skills were when there was only one solution. It was impossible to know if she’d be able to open the gates from the other side, and maybe it was set-up so only someone with the voice could enter. If so, she was taking a gamble—but at the same time, what would she lose? Karkat? It wasn’t as if his usefulness would be the problem, but more his knowledge of her and her intentions. Giving an alternative solution one last struggle to grasp, Terezi finally gave up. She needed to proceed and she was the only one who could allow that to happen.

“Then I’ll do it,” Terezi spoke, briefly checking that everything was securely attached to her body. “I wouldn’t worry about waiting though,” she smiled at Kanaya, the action turning into a leer. “If there’s a lever on the other side, then it should just be seconds.” Making careful note of the distance between each stone, Terezi stood at the beginning of all of them. She glanced carefully at Karkat, unsure what to say but hesitant about whether he’d leave. She then turned back towards the task at hand, having to trust in what was to come.

As soon as Terezi agreed, Kanaya was bracing herself, regardless of Terezi’s promise of not having to wait long, and even before she was through the gates and before she shouted, she was moving towards Karkat. Terezi seemed at least vision impaired, so in the dark, she didn’t expect she would notice, and she could keep her voice down, and her hand fell on Karkat’s good shoulder, accidentally a little tighter than she intended from worry. “What is going on?” she hissed to him, and Karkat turned towards her to regard her question before Terezi shouted, and the both of them started from the volume of it.

“Don’t worry about it,” Karkat replied, looking somewhat at a loss of what to say to her as he tried to shrug out of her grip. “It’s fine,” he added, but his reassurances meant little to Kanaya at this point.

With an internal grimace, Terezi moved past each stone, vision slightly affected by the glow that clouded her senses. As she hit the last one, she recalled the shout she’d learnt only a day before. The speed of it was still frightening, but left a sense of exhilaration that appealed to her. She felt herself skid as she suddenly slowed, barely stopping herself from stumbling over the bottom of the stairs that suddenly appeared. Steadied, she glanced back behind her—surprised to find the gates open and waiting. “What was that: like five seconds?” She laughed into the darkness of where the three remained, feeling victorious over something so small.

"What are your injuries from?" Kanaya demanded instead, golden eyes flitting over the bandages that covered her friend’s neck and shoulder. He didn’t get a chance to reply this time—Terezi really had run through the thing in record time and the gate was still open from her besting it—any hesitance from the others would be cause for alarm and the Dragonborn would not take lightly to it. "They’re nothing, I’m fine," Karkat whispered, finally sliding out and away from her grip and hurrying after Terezi in an effort to avoid a lecture on dawdling and how could he be so slow and the many more pratfalls his speed must have brought him in his given field of thieving. Kanaya could only quietly seethe and follow them while she tried to draw some meaning from Karkat’s muttered explanations.

But she could only follow in silence for so long—she was getting fed up with this whole game and she expected the tomb to be drawing to a close soon—maybe now Terezi might need them and keep them around, as such, but once she had her trinket, who knew what she would do to them? She was sure the wounds that marred Karkat were from Terezi, and she expected that if she allowed her to continue toting him around like her plaything, he’d end up with more, and worse, and she wasn’t going to allow that to happen. Resolve fortified, Kanaya stopped moving down a more cave-like passage, pointedly moving herself in front of Rose to defend her, should anything happen with the Dragonborn.

"So, Terezi," Kanaya called out, keeping her face straight and stony as Karkat spun in what looked like horror at her outburst. "I would like to know, before we continue, what we are doing here—what all of us are doing here—and why. It’s quite clear to me now that you’re the Dragonborn, with your ability to shout, and your… mysterious quest through the tomb of Jurgen Windcaller. But I want to know your relationship with Karkat, and why someone like him is traveling with someone like you. I refuse to play guessing games with your ambiguous answers any longer as well. I want an explanation, and I want it now, before we proceed any further.”

As always, Terezi made sure to examine the whole situation as Kanaya began talking, vision dancing between the three of them in confusion. Karkat’s body language seemed off, and Kanaya’s tone seemed to be on the offensive, while Rose seemed to share Karkat’s hesitation. To Terezi, it was obvious what Kanaya was doing there—she’d forced herself upon them so they’d had no choice but to bring her and Rose along, why exactly was she acting as if Terezi had done something wrong? All it took was her to drop Karkat’s name, and Terezi wanted to be wrong about what that meant. She turned to Rose, and even with the distance she could see the tilt of the woman’s vision away from her.

“You’re his friend in Morthal,” Terezi stated, the realization obvious to everyone in the room apart from her. The knowledge of that hit her harder, unsure who she could trust. Her earlier decisions had all weighed on Rose—and Karkat, to an extent—but if there was no reason to trust Rose, then her actions had every right to become removed from everyone else. Her hand moved to her weapon, resting the handle without drawing it, but whether it was drawn or not didn’t matter: her position was clear, she didn’t trust Kanaya or Rose, and she didn’t trust Karkat again either.

“I don’t like giving straight answers to those who demand them; don’t you think it takes away the fun of being ambiguous in the first place? And didn’t Karkat tell you how much I like games?” Terezi smirked, making sure her confidence against the three of them was clear. She briefly wondered if this was how Vriska positioned herself and her actions as such, but tried to ignore such thoughts. The idea that her behaviour mimicked Vriska was slightly repulsive, no matter how much she was consciously aware of herself mirroring the girl from her childhood. For the sake of the situation, there was no point acknowledging her emotions—about herself or about Karkat’s lack of information, and the small moments where she’d felt that maybe they could have been friends. She hadn’t been betrayed, so feeling like she had wasn’t going to help.

“Or it looks like Karkat didn’t tell you anything,” she tilted her head, quickly trying to use the information she had to get one up on Kanaya—predator instead of prey. “What I want with him isn’t any of your business, and neither is our relationship. I’m guessing Karkat didn’t tell you that he got that wound from protecting me, with no one forcing him to do so. Or did you assume that ‘someone like me’ finds enjoyment in randomly hacking at people’s shoulders? My blade wouldn’t leave his arm attached to his shoulder,” she laughed, although she intended the last statement to be a promise of what was to come for Karkat. “As sweet as it is that Karkat’s—ah, what did he call you again?—Karkat’s starving orphan friend cares so much about him, I don’t have time for this, Maryam.”

Karkat’s breath fell from shaking lips, his red eyes flitting nervously between the two, trying to watch for signs of a coming struggle—Terezi’s hand moved to her blade, and Karkat’s moved to his own as hers did, eyes darting back to Kanaya to watch her posture, tensing further as she flexed her long fingers, likely ready to cast a spell. Forgetting Rose for a moment, he cast a nervous glance at her, wondering where her allegiance would fall between her lover and her brother’s close friend, but the Redguard looked about as uncomfortable with what was going on here as he did—if it came to blows, though, he didn’t expect she would be standing on the sidelines.

Kanaya looked sharply to Karkat at Terezi’s words, all but ignoring the Dragonborn for the moment. “Is that true? Your wounds are from protecting her?” She looked a mix between bewildered at the audacity of the statement, and enraged at the audacity of Terezi expecting her to believe it. Karkat faltered at the question, looking back towards Terezi nervously. “Yeah—I mean, yeah, I banged up my shoulder protecting her,” he replied, hoping the specifics of his statement would be enough to placate them while maybe keeping Kanaya none of the wiser to his other wound.

"Really?" Kanaya hissed, her fingers clenching to a fist while she looked Karkat over dubiously, and him tripping over his words didn’t help to convince her of his story—nor did Terezi’s antagonizing tone, but it was clear she wasn’t going to get the information she needed from the Redguard. Karkat might omit things, but he wouldn’t lie to her, and she had to trust that. "Why did you protect her?"

She watched the Dunmer falter again, glancing helplessly towards the Redguard before he shrugged and replied simply with, "She’s the Dragonborn." That was about all Kanaya needed to hear though—if Karkat cared for someone, his answer would have been plainly that; it wouldn’t need to be disguised by a fancy title, and clearly he felt an obligation to her due to her title that she didn’t treat him well enough to deserve. "Why are you traveling with her?" Karkat’s shoulders slumped, glancing towards Terezi again to watch her blade, having easily picked up her threat from a moment ago about taking off his arm. "I have to," he offered weakly, knowing it wouldn’t be enough for Kanaya but unwilling to lie to her anymore than he already had. "I don’t—I don’t have a choice."

"I understand," Kanaya replied, golden eyes narrowing icily on Terezi while she briefly considered her next move. "Unfortunately Terezi, I am not going to allow you to take whatever you like just because you are the Dragonborn; you’re not taking Karkat any further than this. Frankly, it’s disgusting that you’ve used his sense of honor to your advantage, abusing the fact that he won’t hurt you because of what you are; but I don’t have the same morals. I won’t let you tote him along like a plaything any longer. I don’t care that you’re Dragonborn—you will release him, or I will kill you."

“Sense of honor?!” Terezi laughed, harsh with disbelief. She hadn’t asked for Karkat to protect her and, if anything, she’d done far more to look out for him. Karkat was there against his will, but she hadn’t tortured him for fun—she’d lost her temper, and for a justifiable reason. She hadn’t used her title to her advantage at all, and she was insulted to think that was how the situation looked. She’d taken Karkat because he was a criminal: her status wasn’t even something she’d been aware of at the time. However, the truth didn’t look like it was going to matter any time soon, because it didn’t look like Kanaya really cared how the state of Karkat’s hostage situation was, as long as he was released. She briefly considered it, unsure if she could fight Kanaya, Rose and Karkat—but she didn’t want to give in yet: not when there was a chance she could come out better. For someone who kept referring to Terezi as ‘the Dragonborn’, Kanaya seemed to be underestimating the abilities that brought.

“How hospitable: remind me not to return to Morthal again after this,” Terezi snarled, hand tightening around her sword. She didn’t draw it still, unwilling to start a fight. Maybe Kanaya was happy enough to kill her, but Terezi was hesitant to kill Kanaya. She didn’t like Rose, but that didn’t mean she wanted to kill her—and she certainly didn’t want to be the reason for causing Dave pain. She looked over Karkat again, wondering how much effort he really was worth. They’d all be fine if she just let him go, but would Kanaya really let her go after Karkat’s all-but-admission that Terezi had been the reason for his neck? Evidently Rose wasn’t enough to keep Kanaya from acting rash, who was still standing by and watching; the fact she herself hadn’t drawn a weapon against Terezi was probably a blessing.

“I’m not letting him go,” she decided, speaking the words slowly. Rose seemed to pull a face in the corner of her vision, but Terezi was more focused on Kanaya. She shifted her hips slowly, ready to move in case Kanaya did attack without warning. She knew that the woman seemed to specialize in magic, which left her choices limited. Was it really a good battle strategy to depend on shouts she’d barely learnt the previous day? There wasn’t much of a choice, seeing as she was outnumbered—but perhaps not out-skilled. Karkat wasn’t an issue, but fighting and potentially killing Rose didn’t sit right with her. The best outcome would be for Kanaya to back down, but she doubted that would happen. “If you want to kill me, then I won’t idly stand by,” she stated, attention focused on Rose as her hands dipped into her robes—confirming her position against Terezi. “Your move,” she offered, painfully aware of other three and the passing of time.

Karkat wasn’t surprised that Terezi didn’t offer his freedom, but he had hoped that she would—not for his own sake at this point, though. He had no idea how a fight between Kanaya and Terezi would end; Terezi was powerful and skilled with her blade, not to mention she had a few Shouts up her sleeve as well, but she was blind, and Karkat, Rose, and Kanaya had all kept her foe’s true nature a secret from her, whereas Kanaya knew well enough what Terezi was and what to expect from her, having a chance to observe her fights with Draugr throughout the course of the tomb, while Karkat expected Terezi was too busy fighting and making sure she didn’t fall off ledges to pay much attention to Kanaya. Rose would likely side with Kanaya as well, and Karkat didn’t want to turn against Kanaya, who was doing all this to free him from essentially a psychopath’s clutches, but the psychopath was the Dragonborn and he couldn’t let her doom Skyrim for his own sake.

"Very well then," Kanaya replied, an almost amused edge to her voice that sent chills down Karkat’s spine, even as someone who knew how kind and hospitable the woman typically behaved. And then she leaned forward, shoulders hunching and arms wrapping around her chest, and Karkat’s lips parted in a silent gasp as he realized what she was doing—and dark red covered her body and the room stank suddenly of blood, and the hissing and growling of the transformation, paired with the smell made his head spin. The red splattered about the room as she finished shifting, wings emerging from her back and skin turned gray and muscled, almost like the gargoyles he’d seen her kind summon once or twice, and the creature that he knew, in his head, was Kanaya even if he couldn’t see it with his eyes anymore let out a terrible roar.

For someone who had given an elegant reply of ‘very well then’, Kanaya’s next move didn’t seem too elegant to Terezi. She gripped her weapon with uncertainty as the other woman didn’t move, unable to hear the crackling sign of magic, or any indication of a weapon. She breathed with nerves as Kanaya did move, but only to shift position. It was uncomfortable how unaware Terezi was on the situation, and she was beginning to contemplate taking the first move—risking whatever Kanaya was doing looked like a mistake waiting to happen. However, she didn’t have time to draw her weapon, too distracted by the colours that were changing in her field of vision. Slowly, Kanaya’s form shifted into some kind of demon, resembling a horror from a legend that Terezi didn’t want to be part of, and the fear bubbled up into a shriek—almost uncharacteristic compared to her usual cool and adaptability.

Rose finally spoke, though it was only Kanaya’s name—only a plea for her girlfriend to stop what she was doing and let things go, but the vampire lord didn’t seem to hear her, or at the very least, didn’t acknowledge her. Her hands extended, red colored magic humming in each, and she cast, and he spun to see the effect, gasping as Terezi was lifted into their air by the spell, made immobile and weak. “Kanaya, stop!” he yelled, moving towards Terezi, though he wasn’t sure what he would be able to do to help her, the way she was. Rose was protesting more actively as well, but it wasn’t phasing her, and her hands clenched tighter as she slowly choked the Dragonborn’s life force out of her.

Terezi barely even had time to acknowledge that, again, information had been kept from her—because before she knew anything, the ground was taken out from under her feet and that horrible taste of red was back again. Only this time, the taste wasn’t just in front of her, it was like it was part of her: suffocating and immobilizing. There was no quick thinking that could save her; there wasn’t even time to formulate thoughts as her ability to think started to trickle away, along with—what felt like—the rest of her body. The lack of control seemed to resonate an urgent need for power again, struggling through the constriction to quell the most striking fear she had. It was with such panic that she managed to shout on instinct, missing Kanaya by a mile. However, it seemed that missing Kanaya hadn’t been all bad, because she was immediately dropped from whatever twisted grip the woman had used on her.  

Moving closer to Terezi may have been a mistake, because when the Dragonborn finally managed an attack, it was a shout, and Karkat nearly lost his footing from the force of it, despite it not being directed at him. The shout echoed in his ears loud, and the whole cave shook, and for a moment Karkat thought it was only the sensation of the shout and the chaos around him that was making him believe that—but the top of the cave was crumbling and falling, and he was suddenly aware that her shout hadn’t hit Kanaya, it had hit the roof of the cave and it was collapsing. It was enough to break Kanaya’s concentration at least, and the Dragonborn fell back; but one threat taken care of didn’t stop the cave from crumbling, and Karkat hurried to her side, pulling her away from the cave-in in a scrambled panic as earth fell around them.

The dust finally settled and the cave didn’t give anymore, and Karkat pushed himself to his knees and turned to look at the cave-in, heart racing from the sheer number of unprecedented events that had just occurred in a tomb where he’d expected his biggest problems to be the walking dead inhabiting the graves. “Are you okay?” he asked, turning to look over Terezi in hopes that he’d managed to spare her of getting hurt.

Terezi’s head was ringing from the fall, leaving her feeling lost and disorientated. She didn’t even have a chance to get a grip on her surroundings, or adjust her vision before she was moved again—aware that she was still in danger but unable to do anything about it. The noise eventually settled, and Terezi could get a shaky grip on the floor as she tried to regain a sense of what was happening. From the disturbance of the previous light, it looked like the whole cave actually had caved in and a glimmer of relief seemed on the horizon—at least until Karkat spoke, confirming that there was still a chance that Kanaya was on their side of the cave in. She tried to give their surroundings a better look, but the pain of moving was too distracting to manage the task.

“Fuck off,” she managed to ground out in reply, lacking any strength behind it. Terezi took a shaky breath as she began to sit back up, hands tentatively pushing against her ribs. Everything felt like it was burning, but her hands shook too much to heal anything yet. She dragged her attention to the rocks with a sluggish movement, unsure what outcome she wanted. Her earlier settlement not to kill Kanaya was now broken, but facing the woman—or monster—again wasn’t something she wanted. However, it seemed the cave in had secured her safety, leaving her unable to care about the fate of the woman who had just tried to kill her, and the woman who hadn’t done anything about it.

Karkat barely heard her weak reply, though he figured it was enough to confirm that she was okay, suddenly realizing that he didn’t know if Rose and Kanaya had survived the cave-in. “Shit,” he murmured, pushing himself to his feet and hurrying towards the rocks that now blocked what may have been their only exit. “Shit, Kanaya! Kanaya, are you okay?”

She flinched slightly as Karkat shouted, hand sliding up to her ears and touching blood across her face. It seemed that the fall had injured her more than she’d realized, sloppily healing where her face had split and taking comfort in the small amount of light it provided, compared to the dark unknown where Kanaya still was.

"Kanaya!" The echo of the cave offered Karkat little comfort, and the collapsed stones were too big and heavy for him to be able to move aside, and the most his efforts did was scrape away some of the gravel. "Kanaya," he murmured, tugging at what looked like it could have been a loose stone in vain as it didn’t budge. His ears perked as he made out the sound of a reply, digging his fingers across the stone again as he strained to move closer to the sound. "I’m fine," Karkat replied, voice raised in hopes he would be heard through the barrier between them. "Both of you? … okay." He glanced back towards Terezi, glad to see she was healing her wounds and aside from shock, didn’t look too much worse for wear. "I’ll figure it out," he shouted, stepping away from the wall and back towards the Dragonborn.

He took a moment to look over her again, scanning the parts of her that had gotten bloodied up from the fight that she’d managed to heal, but he wasn’t sure how well she was coping with having her energy drained, and the least he could do was be helpful, especially after what had just happened. “C’mon,” he offered, extending his hand for her to use as leverage; and he wasn’t sure why he expected her to take it, sighing softly as she ignored him and pushed herself up without any help from him. Shrugging it off, Karkat got back to his feet, casting one last look at the rock barrier behind them and headed on through the tomb. “Let’s hope there’s an emergency exit out of here.”

Terezi tensed at Karkat’s conversation confirming that Kanaya was alive, although Rose’s condition was a relief. In the end, it was a good thing that all four of them had survived due to the problems it would have caused if one hadn’t. She managed to relax a little with that in mind; Kanaya wasn’t going to get her again. Even if she was calm in regards of panic, it didn’t mean she was fine with Karkat. She completely ignored the fact he was even there, instead moving just to spite him. It was a struggle to keep a grimace off her face has she moved, swallowing down a hiss for the sake of what little was left of her pride. Nonetheless, her breathing still fell heavier from the ache to her chest. She ignored his comments too as they continued back through the tomb, attention as far removed from the thief as possible. Her attention fell onto herself, busying her attention with the areas of pain that she could reach to heal.

Her disregard towards Karkat continued so without faltering, not even bothering to waste time or thoughts on what had just happened and her feelings towards it. She made sure just to stay aware of the surroundings, sometimes letting her thoughts trail off into expectations of the horn and her quest to come. It seemed they finally reached the horn as the last room they entered began to move, Terezi flinching out of the vulnerability that Kanaya had left. With nothing attacking her, she calmed down again and began to look the room over for the horn. There seemed to be bodies of Draugr scattered across the room with no sign of movement or impending resurrection. Finding the scene odd, Terezi continued looking until her attention fell onto a pedestal. She approached it with a blossoming feeling of relief, only to find that hope crushed in the last insult the day had to offer. She didn’t even pick the note up, simply biting back the urge to laugh with resentment at the day’s offerings.

When Karkat caught sight of the note he didn’t bother to bite back his exasperated sigh, stepping around Terezi and swiping it up angrily as if it was the cause for all the misfortune they had all endured today which, in a way, it sort of was. The least it could have done was actually be the horn and make their lives a little easier, but clearly that was not the case today. “Dragonborn, I need to speak to you. Urgently. Rent the attic room at the Sleeping Giant Inn in Riverwood, and I’ll meet you. A friend,” he read, hissing as he finished the note and slipping it away with the rest of his possessions. “Yeah, a friend, I fucking bet.”

With the note out of the way, Karkat took a moment to survey the area, red eyes panning over the fallen Draugr curiously, noting that despite the fact that someone had beaten them to this chamber, they’d still had to fight their way in—the person coming through and killing only these few Draugr seemed highly unlikely, considering the hordes they’d had to deal with. After a moment of snooping about, he spotted the answer, heading to a small, hidden tunnel in one of the Draugr’s caskets and peering through, sighing with relief when it looked like a long tunnel and probably a secondary way out. “I think we can get out through here,” he told her, relieved when she at least followed him into the tunnel, even if she still wasn’t speaking to him. “I guess we’re headed to Riverwood, then?” he asked, unsurprised when he was greeted by silence. The Terezi who had complimented him on his archery seemed like a fond memory to this, and he just had to hope she’d simmer out in time so they could at least communicate again.

Terezi was both intrigued and frustrated by the note, a number of questions circulating that she didn’t know the answer to. Karkat was indeed correct in assuming that they were heading to Riverwood, even if she wouldn’t grace him with a reply. The rest of their journey followed with such a routine, Terezi stone-faced and unresponsive.  Her thoughts mostly gravitated towards seething anger, unable to stand the presence she had forced herself into. There was so much she wanted to shout at him, but keeping quiet was the best way to keep composed and in control. The two departed the tomb, starting the process of travelling towards Riverwood. The journey was tedious, with Terezi still refusing to acknowledge Karkat as they walked. Even when she stopped walking, giving Karkat no indication or warning that they were stopping and making a fire was an effort too far in helping Karkat, so she let him handle that task without any regard—not even giving a sarcastic comment or condescending look in his direction. She pulled out a bed roll for herself and didn’t offer Karkat anything—too angry to even eat or bother tying him up. She was sure he knew that she thought nothing of him again, and that she wouldn’t hesitate about killing him this time.

Karkat had eventually given up with making an effort to get anything out of Terezi, accepting the fact that she didn’t want anything to do with him for now. Stopping to make camp was tiring—Terezi didn’t help, or even indicate that they were stopping, so Karkat took it on himself to gather firewood without straying too far, not wanting to anger her any further. He felt self conscious as he struggled to light the fire, not convinced that her silence meant she wasn’t judging him for it, but eventually he got it going. The dragonborn wasn’t interested in eating either, and he expected if he dug his greedy fingers into their food supply without an okay from her, he’d be hearing about it later, or maybe she would just kill him, so he decided not to risk it, inching closer to the fire as an attempt to warm himself without a bedroll of his own.

The whole evening was petty, but she felt it was justified. All she wanted to do was sleep to ease the dull pain that was still resounding through the parts of her body she hadn’t been able to reach. Even when she was sure that Karkat had fallen asleep a while ago, Terezi still couldn’t relax enough to do so herself. Her thoughts circulated around Kanaya and all the ‘could haves’ surrounding the earlier events. She hated feeling betrayed, even though no one had really owed her anything in the first place. Was Rose really going to let her die? Had Karkat only helped her because of her title? At least she knew the answer to that question was yes, and it angered it even more. The further her thoughts and emotions mixed, the more Terezi found herself getting worked up. Out of habit of comfort, she dipped her fingers below her armour and hooked the chain that hung there. She pressed the metal against her lips, simply feeling the weight of it for comfort. Her eyes slipped shut for a moment as she tried to remain calm, suppressing the want to start crying out of frustration. She was stronger than that, and the necklace reminded her of such—that her mother would have wanted better: expected better. Terezi sighed with exhaustion, resigned to tracing the pendant over her lower lip as the night dragged on.

Karkat didn’t notice her fiddling with something right away, absently watching the fire flicker while his eyes tired themselves out, but when she sighed, he glanced towards her, frowning as he caught sight of the trinket she was clasping. For a bit, he couldn’t make out what it was and nearly lost interest trying, but her fingers shifted slightly and his whole body tensed as he recognized the pendant, unsure what to do about it but leaping at the chance to break the tense silence. “You have one of those?” he asked, immediately starting to rummage through his own things before she snarled something at him for speaking out of turn. “I do too,” he offered, holding out his own towards the light of the fire so she might be able to make it out from where she was.

_(art by[moirallegianceismagic](http://moirallegianceismagic.tumblr.com/post/76429425919/cool-skyrimstuck-commission-i-took-from-my-dear))_

At the sound of Karkat’s voice, Terezi snapped out of her self-comfort trance. Her hand automatically curled around the pendant, hiding it out of view even though it was obvious that he had seen it. She felt even more annoyed that he had disturbed her at a vulnerable moment, instantly ruffling her feathers. She didn’t know what he was looking for and the secrecy her mother held had ingrained itself into Terezi too: Karkat knowing wasn’t a good thing, even if it was logical that a Dark Elf would be the last person who would object to such a symbol of morals and values. Still, she regarded him with suspicious as she pushed the necklace back under her armour—watching him closely.

He produced something that was supposed to be a replicate of hers, and Terezi’s face fell into confusion. She couldn’t fully see the shapes from her position, but she didn’t want to move to check. It wasn’t as if he’d lie about it, and the idea of someone of his race having one wasn’t exactly strange. Only she did find it strange that a thief would carry one, after associating it with the goodness of people for so long. Maybe he’d stolen it, she internally snorted. “Why do you have that?” She instead asked, finally breaking the silence that had been upheld all evening.

Her tone made Karkat recoiling from his effort to make amends, face falling slightly while he tried to ignore the voice in his head asking why he’d even bothered trying. He let the necklace fall back into his hands, tracing his fingers along the symbol slowly. “It shouldn’t be a surprise someone like me has one,” he grumbled, narrowed eyes flicking up at her in annoyance. “You do know what it stands for, don’t you? Why wouldn’t a Dunmer carry one?” But a sharp attitude wasn’t going to make things any better, and he sighed, giving a half-hearted shrug. "It was important to my family," he told her, looking up at her briefly before his eyes dropped back to the necklace. "I won’t get into it because I’m sure anything I could tell you about them would just be predictable orphan boy fodder but, that’s why I have it. My family believed in it." He sighed again, closing his fingers around the pendant and glancing curiously towards her again. "Why do you have one, though? I didn’t think many Redguards had a need to carry one, or supported the cause, even, I guess."

Terezi tensed as Karkat met her response with sharpness of his own, almost looking for any reason to go back to ignoring him. His insinuation at her ignorance left her teeth grinding, seeing as she’d spent her whole childhood being told the important of its meaning—so much so that she’d gone to an extreme length to keep it in her possession. “I know what it stands for,” she hissed back at him, already too annoyed by the day’s events to bother masking anything else. She hated him and the cocky way in which he replied to everything, and she hated him even more for questioning the most important thing to her. Her attitude made it hard to listen to him talk about his family, disinterested through her defensive behaviour. Still, she could understand him—which led her to resent him a little further. She didn’t reply to his question at first, almost content with passing it off and going back to ignoring him—but the more she thought about it, the more his accusations had rubbed her the wrong way; to her, it was almost as if his words had questioned her right to carry it. “It’s important to my family too,” she relented, unable to speak of her family as if it was something in the past. Besides, as long as she was alive then her family still technically existed, even if she was the only member of it.

"Hm," Karkat murmured, looking back down at his own necklace and watching the reflection of the fire dance across the polished silver metal. He hadn’t expected to find common ground with Terezi here, of all places, and it made him wonder if things would be different if he had given her his full name from the start, or if Kanaya had mentioned it, or if he told her now, even. It was a nice thought that perhaps her family had so much respect for the necklace and what it stood for, that she might even let him go, but he didn’t want things to be that way. Depending on his family had never ended well for him and he couldn’t lean on it for help now. Still, he wondered how much she actually knew about the cause, whether she knew about its leader or just of its purpose, how much she knew about the gruesome end of things, at least as far as its creator went. For all Karkat knew, someone else might be working behind the sign now—he’d given up believing in it a long time ago. But he didn’t know her story, why it was important to her, and as curious as he was, he couldn’t help but worry that pressing further—asking how much she knew about the leader, even, would push things too far and she might realize his connection. He smiled slightly, tucking his necklace away again. “Well, it looks like we have something in common after all,” he shrugged, looking over towards her to judge how she was feeling about all of this and hoping his last statement wouldn’t get his neck wounds reopened.

Terezi regarded Karkat more closely with his response, shifting ever so slightly to get a better look at him. She still felt a surge of anger from looking at him, but there was still that strange potential for kinship. There was the blurred outline of his necklace, matching the one she owned; he was right when he said that they had something in common, even if Terezi wasn’t sure how far that fell. Their beliefs in the symbol were probably different anyway, with her own attachment having nothing to do with any oppression she’d faced. Still, that didn’t mean she’d disregarded the principles behind the movement, even if they probably meant more to Karkat than they did to her. “I guess,” she slowly shrugged in return, too subdued by the discovery to be hostile, but too upset from earlier to be any more hospitable. As far as she was concerned, slipping back into silence was fine.

"Also—" he sighed, dropping his gaze back to the fire as he lost a bit of his nerve. "You probably don’t want to hear it but, I’m sorry about what happened back there. I know that… I should have told you right off that I knew Kanaya, but after what you said, I wasn’t going to risk her getting hurt if I fucked up. But I didn’t think she’d do that, I didn’t think… I guess I should have. It kind of makes sense that she saw through things but I didn’t think she would… I’m not sorry that I didn’t tell you what she was, though, only that she did that because of me. Maybe it was a snap judgement on my part but you don’t seem to open to the idea of… peaceful, benevolent monsters. Maybe you are—but a lot of people hear the word vampire and they want it dead, no matter what the vampire is like. I’m sorry things went badly because of me but I was never willing to risk Kanaya…" he let out a heavy exhale as he realized his tone had shifted, nervously looking towards her again before he looked away. "I mean, I didn’t want you to get hurt, and I didn’t mean to… mess up things between you and Rose? Although your relationship still confuses me… whatever. The point is, I’m sorry."

It seemed that Karkat had plans in mind that weren’t, because he started talking and Terezi’s eyes started narrowing with annoyance. She didn’t want justification of his actions—she already knew why he’d done it, and he didn’t exactly owe her anything. “She’s a monster and Rose is a necromancer: how fitting,” she spat instead, angrier at Rose than she was Karkat. Kanaya didn’t seem too peaceful when she’d been killing Terezi, but the Redguard was hesitant to bring that back up again—embarrassed, and almost ashamed, of her weakness and vulnerability. But then Karkat was apologizing for her getting hurt, and the anger at Rose switched back to Karkat. “Stop doing things because of my title,” she suddenly hissed, the insult from Kanaya’s earlier words still burning her pride. “You didn’t want to me to get hurt because I’m the Dragonborn? I don’t care. I’m your captor and you’re my hostage. I don’t need you to look out for me or feel sorry for me.”

Karkat’s eyes narrowed slits when Terezi called Kanaya a monster, already feeling the anger tense up through his body, fingers curling into tight fists, and he was ready to start arguing until he caught the last of what she’d said—that Rose was a necromancer, and his anger simmered slightly from surprise. He hadn’t seen the Redguard do too much fighting down there, but he had never suspected it was because her method of fighting would draw unnecessary attention from potential allies to her, and it didn’t sit right with him to know he’d spent so much time with someone who refused to let the dead rest until their bodies were dust. But Rose wasn’t the issue here, and as unsettled as the realization made him, he wasn’t going to engage. "She’s not a monster," he said firmly, though a good portion of the anger had faded. "She would never do anything like that to someone who she didn’t think deserved it. She was only trying to protect me; and she gave you a peaceful choice, she said if you let me go she’d leave you alone. I don’t even know what I’m still doing here, anyway, but—" he bit his tongue, decided that claiming he was only still here because Terezi was probably stubbornly trying to ruin his life would only get him hurt more. "Whatever. Point is she isn’t a monster, and she hates using that… form. But people will go through great lengths to protect the ones they care about and if you think that makes her a monster than maybe we don’t have anything in common." He sighed, glowering at her briefly before his gaze dropped to the fire again. "And hey, don’t worry about it, Terezi; I won’t look out for you again after this." Maybe her title didn’t matter—if she saw people like Kanaya as monsters just for what they were, then she wasn’t the hero Skyrim needed, and he didn’t owe it to his father to look after her, either.

Terezi didn’t quite agree that Kanaya had given her a choice: had the cards been laid out on the table clearly, then she would have been given an informed decision. She also didn’t think that dragging out her death had been the best approach when there were quicker ways of killing someone. She could have easily set Terezi on fire without revealing her form, which would have achieved the same effect of torture. The whole thing had been about a show of power and intimidation, and if that was supposed to garner respect over how valiant she’d been over ‘saving’ her poor whiny orphan friend then Karkat needed a serious shift in perspective. Still, she couldn’t really doubt Kanaya for being a monster over protecting Karkat—she would have done the same over her own friends. Even if she had called Kanaya a monster out of spite—and even if she was now petrified over a form that certainly wasn’t human—Terezi wasn’t in a hurry to apologize, and the more offense it caused to Karkat the better.

“Good,” she acknowledged, glad that some understanding had been met between them. She didn’t need Karkat to like her, and things were certainly easier when the two of them didn’t get along. At least then she knew not to trust him, meaning that whatever pseudo-friendship she’d felt towards him in the cave was just that—a fake projection. He was a terrible thief who was being kept around to bring down the organization, and keeping him around even longer was purely to spite Kanaya—thinking that they had mutual ground had been a mistake, and Terezi didn’t make the same mistake twice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lots of updating this time, with new art uvu  
> stuff is finally moving a bit faster now.... 
> 
> rose and kanaya now have profiles on the bio page: http://to-tundra.tumblr.com/bios
> 
> i think thats everything, until next week! :o


	11. kynesgrove i

The journey didn’t get any easier from that point, and it was regrettable to find there was no way the two of them could at least casually speak to each other. They were both still holding tight to their grudges from the fight and Karkat doubted Terezi even wanted to make amends, even for the sake of easier travelling. But at least quietly hating each other was easier than loudly arguing, so he kept his mouth shut and followed along all the ridiculous places the two of them were dragged thanks to her title. Riverwood was meant to be a pitstop to get back the horn, but it quickly turned into something quite different when the innkeeper revealed not only had she taken the horn—which she promptly returned to them—but that she was likely one of the last surviving members of the Blades, and that she understood how and where the dragons were coming back. However, she was very straightforward about not believing Terezi was truly the Dragonborn, insisting repeatedly that she needed proof, regardless of what either of the two of them might say, and asked that they meet her in Kynesgrove.

As if the walk there wasn’t irritating enough, Ivarstead was sort of on the way, if you took the long way around, which they did, because Terezi was meant to return the Horn of Jurgen Windcaller to the Greybeards and of course, she was going to do it. Walking the 7000 Steps again could easily qualify as a form of torture, and while they were both alert and ready, thankfully, the frost trolls didn’t turn up this time. Like the last time, the Greybeards didn’t let him past the foyer despite the fact that he’d helped to retrieve the horn as well, and Terezi didn’t bother arguing for his sake, either. He used his time in a cold stony hallway to get some shut-eye while the Greybeards probably taught Terezi some amazingly cool shout that she wouldn’t have the courtesy to show him later.

The way to Kynesgrove had Karkat on edge for about a thousand reasons—he didn’t know what they were expecting when they got there, for one thing; Delphine hadn’t cared to specify or go into detail with her plans. Karkat didn’t like the snow, didn’t like the cold. It was too familiar to where he’d come from, and whenever he wandered into the colder reaches of Skyrim, the Nords got colder as well. Kynesgrove was a hair’s breadth away from Windhelm, and that was a thought that chilled him more than the icy winds. But he could see no reason Terezi would care to go there, and he could only hope they would get to Kynesgrove, do whatever stupid thing Delphine expected of them, and then get out.

But once they were close to Kynesgrove, things stopped looking like they’d be a simple in and out job—a snowstorm had kicked up, and the locals of the town were in a panic, rushing past the two of them and warning to turn back, or to take shelter in the inn. Terezi hated the cold, and the snowstorm Delphine had led them into could only add to her disdain for Skyrim’s climate. She tried to ignore the way it all but froze her muscles into place, focusing on the task ahead instead of how uncomfortable her body felt. Aside from her preference for sunshine and warmth, the snow ruined her vision even further. Feeling weak in front of Karkat and Delphine was not an option she could afford to choose, and so she tried to ignore the hindrance of her condition as best as possible. Although it, once again, made navigation difficult, there wasn’t a real need to see; she could follow Delphine fine, able to make out figures that contrasted against the snow. It was only when she heard a familiar roar that Terezi tensed, apprehensive of what was about to happen.

Even from far away, it was easy to make out the figure in the distance were not human. Something was happening, even though Terezi was unsure what it was exactly. The figure of one dragon turned into two, and a mixture of nerves and excitement swirled about her stomach. There was talking, but the language was lost on her, only able to pick up on Dovahkiin. She wasn’t sure how she felt about that: it was surreal and yet slightly ominous—whatever they knew or were saying, she would never know. Only then the language changed, and a dragon was speaking to her in her own tongue. It wasn’t its knowledge of the language that surprised her, but more the fact she’d been personally addressed. She couldn’t even argue when they called her arrogant for not knowing the dragon’s tongue, mostly through agreement but also out of her stunned reaction. Being stupefied meant that she was off the mark with the second dragon’s intention, brain processing what was happening at half the speed she usually did. It was only when the attack started, that Terezi realized how Delphine intended for her to prove her status. Killing a dragon with her own hand was an idea that repulsed her, but Delphine didn’t look like she was going to get any closer and Karkat certainly wasn’t strong enough. She didn’t want to kill it, but she didn’t want to die either. It was a moral dilemma of kill or be killed, and even her values couldn’t override the natural need for survival.

Long range was not Terezi’s strong point at all, meaning she had no choice but to get closer. She hadn’t seen the fight in Riften for herself, and the challenge a dragon would present was unknown to her. She was quickly made wary of its ability to breathe both fire and frost, meaning that a huge loss of stamina was occurring from having to dodge around so much. She could usually out-match humans in tiring her opponent out, but that seemed impossible against a dragon. Her troubles with finding a tactic were made even stranger by the goading from her opponent, who seemed to have taken a fondness on calling out her arrogance. She could only rely on Karkat and whatever Delphine was willing to offer, at least until the dragon landed. There was no other choice but to confront it head on if they were to come out alive, which meant relying on Pyralspite. It was a terrifying attempt, only managing to start off with small lacerations which seemed to mirror onto her own skin as the newly announced Sahloknir fought back. There seemed to be a cycle of switching between dodging and attacking, which was only upheld through her race’s elongated stamina. With a mess made of both herself and Sahloknir, Terezi finally managed to get Pyralspite close enough to finish the battle.

As with the first dragon, Sahloknir’s remains began to dissolve into light that startled her the same as the first time. But, for such a magnificent display, Terezi didn’t feel amazed or blessed. It felt cheap—dirty, even—to kill something as she had. She felt like she’d been tricked into killing it too, constantly stuck in a state of betrayal from people she shouldn’t have trusted in the first place. Even with the theatrics over, Terezi couldn’t give Delphine the attention she probably should have, instead watching over the skeleton that she was responsible for. What was the point of being Dragonborn if this was all there was? Constantly being tested over her status and doing the opposite of what she wanted, for the sake of proving herself to other people, wasn’t the kind of life she’d ever wanted. Killing dragons wasn’t making her happy, and it certainly wasn’t her duty. There were thousands of other inhabitants in Skyrim who would happily kill dragons—so why did it fall onto her to fulfil that? Looking over the remains, Terezi couldn’t feel her usual assurance of being cunning or confident; she only felt used, and mournful.

Regardless of how Karkat viewed dragons himself, watching Terezi kill Sahloknir didn’t sit right with him, and even if he shared Delphine’s opinion that the dragons were a threat that needed to be eliminated, the fact that the one person in Skyrim who loved them was forced to be the one true dragon slayer was enough to get to even him. Her attitude shift was evident to him, and he wasn’t sure if it was because he knew her fairly well at this point or if it was just obvious, but Delphine seemed so caught up in business that either she didn’t notice, or she didn’t care to comment on it. Worried that her focus was elsewhere, Karkat paid close attention to what Delphine had to say, figured that it would most likely going to be important. “Okay,” Karkat interrupted as she went on, raking a hand through his hair as he did, “so the Thalmor are the enemy, got it. We’ll head back to Riverwood to plan our next move with you as soon as we can.”

Terezi’s attention flittered back into the conversation as she heard Karkat’s voice, unsure exactly what he had agreed to. She was vaguely aware of her mother’s warnings not to get involved with the Thalmor, but whatever Delphine wanted from her could wait. She didn’t feel overly hospitable after being forced into killing a dragon, meaning whatever part of the plan came next wasn’t in her priorities. She lifted her head for a moment in acknowledgement of Delphine’s departure, before turning back to her moral dilemma. Killing Sahloknir made her feel like a monster, unsure of what that definition even was anymore. Karkat didn’t regard Kanaya as a monster because she’d been protecting him—but what had Terezi been protecting? Her own self-preservation?

Once the Blades member had departed, Karkat glanced towards Terezi and then followed her gaze to the remains of the dragon, shuffling uncomfortably for a moment before he cleared his throat, trying to figure out what exactly to say to lighten the mood, or at least get her mind off what had just gone on. “Um,” he sighed, eyes dropping nervously in case she turned to look at him for speaking up. “We don’t have to go to Riverwood right away if you don’t want to, I’m sure there’s… important things for you to do elsewhere,” he offered weakly, grimacing at his poor handling. “I mean… are you okay?” he asked, realizing once he’d asked that it was just as useless as the last thing he’d said and silently wished that maybe she’d cut out his tongue last time she’d raised her blade to him. He opened his mouth again, trying to think of something a little better to offer but just sighed and closed his mouth again, waiting for the probably inevitable snappy reply for Terezi about how she didn’t need or want his help. At least he’d tried, even if, in the end, that would probably only make her more upset with him.

So far into her own thoughts, Terezi was left slightly dumbfounded by Karkat’s question, far from expecting him to offer any comfort or indication that he’d noticed. There was a brief moment where she felt almost grateful that he had: but then Kanaya’s words filtered back through her thoughts, diminishing any chance of her answering his question—or even taking it as sincere caring. “I told you not to do that,” she instead replied, voice neutral as opposed to the annoyance that her words implied. “Don’t look out for me because of my title; Skyrim’s dragon slayer is fine,” she assured him, the bitterness rising up again as she looked over the skeleton one last time. There wasn’t much else she could achieve from standing around in the freezing cold looking over a dead dragon—she was a big girl, it was time to push on with the day and focus on other things, especially if her resentment at it was so obvious. Finally dragging her vision away, Terezi looked back at Karkat instead. “We’re not going to Riverwood, not yet anyway.”

Karkat immediately felt himself bristle when she scolded him for trying to help, although the annoyance faded as quickly as it arrived when she referred to herself as Skyrim’s dragon slayer, unsure what could be done to make her feel any better, or if it was all just pointless as long as it was coming from him. He still didn’t really understand her—he couldn’t figure out why she cared so much for the monsters that were ravaging their country, why killing a creature who had risen from the earth just to butcher thousands of innocents was such a moral dilemma to her, but if he was honest, he wasn’t sure he ever would understand it. What he did know was that killing dragons made her feel bad about herself, and since he was the one who’d talked her into following the path of the Dragonborn, he supposed it might be his own fault, at least a little.

"I’m not doing it because of your title," he grumbled, deliberately looking at the ground so he didn’t have to look at her. "I don’t… understand why you care about the dragons, but I understand that you do. And this sucks. It doesn’t have anything to do with you being Dragonborn, it has to do with… you’re upset, and…” he shrugged, sighing and rubbing the back of his neck. “I don’t know, you shouldn’t have to be. Whatever,” he raised his voice a little, frustrated with himself for rambling on like that when Terezi was already being snarky at him. “Anyway—why don’t we go rest at the inn for a bit? Not for the night necessarily just, you know. Plus, innkeepers always know the latest rumors and maybe you can find something better to do than whatever’s waiting in Riverwood. Sound good?”

Terezi wasn’t sure how to process Karkat’s next words, almost frozen out of confusion to his misplaced compassion. She didn’t need him to understand her, and there was even less of a reason for him to attempt to, so why he still appeared to be trying anyway was a mystery to her. It was even harder to push past her blurred black and white standards to accept that a thief could have morals and empathy. Even if his words sounded tentative, it was obvious that he had a clear understanding of what she was feeling and was even attempting solutions to widen the gap in the time until she had to go back and deal with the things upsetting her again. There wasn’t really a set way that she could process his concern, especially after he’d denied doing it just because of her title.

Confusion still looming, Terezi’s attention turned to look over Karkat. He didn’t look like he was just pretending to be manipulative, and his posture suggested that maybe he was struggling and somewhat uncomfortable too. “Yeah, the inn sounds good,” she agreed, eager to get out of the cold now that the suggestion was out there. She almost left the conversation at that, but there was an underlying sense that she should offer something back to Karkat in return; even if she didn’t feel comfortable enough to show gratitude, she could at least attempt to be nicer for the moment. “Plus we should probably eat—right? Inns have the best food.”

Karkat sighed with relief when she softened, agreeing to rest in the inn for a while instead of getting angry at him for taking unnecessary pity on her. She was even mentioning food, and that was exciting to him—he couldn’t remember the last time they’d stopped for a meal, with Terezi too frustrated with him to care and also having apparently unending stamina in comparison to the smaller Dunmer. He could only hope her offer of food included buying it for him—obviously he hadn’t made any coin since she’d started toting him around, and he wasn’t fearless enough to try to keep stealing things under her nose—he hadn’t even got a chance to poke in some urns and around the burial sites they’d gone too, with fighting all the Draugr and keeping Kanaya and Terezi from killing each other or, themselves, in the case of Terezi and high ledges taking priority.

With the threat of the dragon gone, Braidswood Inn was emptier than usual, with most of the working folk back out in the cold, trying to fix the damages the dragon had caused, and it was easy to spot the Innkeeper among the few who still took refuge here; only she spotted them as well, switching her broom from one hand to the other and approaching them. “Kynesgrove owes you a debt of gratitude, miss,” she told Terezi, and Karkat idly wondered how the whole town already knew not only that Terezi had been the one to stop the dragon but also apparently that his help had not been noteworthy enough to garter thanks. “We’d be ruined if it wasn’t for you, why I—I don’t know how Kjeld and I would be able to take care of the children if this place had been destroyed. I don’t have much to offer you in return, but I can give you a free place to sleep tonight and a warm meal, if you should want it. Just let me know if you do,” she offered, her serious expression cracking into a small smile before she wandered away to return to tending to her floor. Silently, Karkat glanced towards Terezi, wondering what impact that conversation had had on her. He didn’t think he needed to enforce what they’d just learned any further—that she hadn’t killed a dragon just for the sake of killing a dragon, that she had saved lives, entire families—and maybe that would help her cope with what had happened. That she wasn’t just a dragonslayer to these people, she was their hero.

Terezi immediately favoured the inn over travelling any further, relieved when goose-bumps formed from the warmth instead of the cold. She startled at being addressed, once again dumbfounded by the women’s words. She hadn’t fought the dragon with the intention of saving anyone’s children—the whole moment had been about whether she was going to kill or be killed, not about the village below. She’d been mourning her loss while the village had been rejoicing over the fact it had none, and that was down to Terezi. Somehow this place thought of her as a hero, when she felt like anything but that. The innkeeper moved away before Terezi had time to process what she was saying, heart and head pounding with the magnitude of what had just happened. “Well,” she slowly turned to Karkat, not quite meeting his eyes. “I guess we’re staying here then?” She asked, even if it was more a statement.

It wasn’t too hard to re-locate the innkeeper, considering that it was almost empty. It felt awkward to approach someone who had essentially put Terezi onto a pedestal for something she hadn’t felt like she’d done, but she tried not to think about that. “I’ll take you up on your offer, but don’t extend it further than you have: I can pay for any excess,” she firmly assured, already uncomfortable enough with being offered free things when she was planning on asking for far more than what had been offered. “But tomato soup sounds pretty good right now, and I haven’t eaten apples in a while too. Do you do apple pie? Or I guess if not then an actual apple will do. The state or form of the apple isn’t really an issue,” she smiled, excited at the prospect of her favourite food. “Oh, and wine—but don’t base it on price, just whatever looks reddest. The brighter the better.” Already used to people’s confusion over her request with wine, Terezi simply continued smiling as the innkeeper looked torn between pressing further and questioning wine-drinking in general. “And if it isn’t too much, add on whatever he wants too,” she finished up, head nodding towards Karkat.

Terezi’s meal requests sounded so good that Karkat was pretty sure his stomach audibly rumbled, although he hoped no one around would have heard it. Her wine request was certainly odd, but he supposed he could ask about it later; it didn’t seem like the sort of question that would lead to an argument at least, so he expected it would be all right. At her request for whatever he wanted being added on as well, Karkat stiffened, slightly surprised by the kind gesture she was offering when an hour ago, she wouldn’t have said two words to him. “Uh,” he stammered, still caught off guard. “Do you have horker stew?” he asked tentatively, the cold from the icy winds reminding him how warm a bowl of horker stew always left you feeling.

"Horker stew? You from around here then?" the innkeeper asked, offering him a polite but somewhat tense smile, and Karkat suddenly realized why people had been brushing past him and only really addressing Terezi. "You must be from the Gray Quarter," she deduced once he nodded in reply to her first question. "I’ll get started on the food for the both of you, you can just wait at a table if you like, I’ll bring it out once it’s ready." And with that, she turned and headed for her kitchen, only pausing to set down the broom by the counter before she disappeared.

Terezi perked up when the innkeeper called out Karkat on being a local, wondering why she hadn’t made the connection with his poor mistreated orphan complex and the city renowned for mistreating Dark Elves—the city that her mother’s hero had taught from, no less. She thanked the innkeeper for the prospect of food, feeling the hunger kick in now that she was safely in the warmth.

"Thanks," Karkat murmured, glancing towards Terezi for a moment before he moved closer to the fire, extending his hands towards the flames in search of warmth. "For offering to get me food too—I’d decline and say I’ll cover it but, obviously that’s not an option," he shrugged, still mourning the loss of the gold he’d collected back in Riften. "Out of curiosity though, what exactly is the deal with the redder the wine the better? It’s uh… it’s kind of a weird request, you know?" He offered a slight smirk, hoping she wouldn’t take it as him offending her and just as the playing teasing and genuine curiosity he meant it with.

Once again, she wasn’t sure how to respond to Karkat being nice. Although his offer of paying was with good intentions, she knew that she wouldn’t want him to cover it with ill-earned money. Even if she was having to shell out more money than usual on him, at least she knew she’d earned it through—what she perceived as—legitimate methods. “Well you can always pay me back when you learn how to make your own coin,” Terezi responded, not sure that a sincere answer was really a great idea when she already felt that she was being too friendly with him. As he asked about the wine, she couldn’t help but laugh.

"You still haven’t figured it out?" Terezi looked at him, head tilted to tease. Although it was flattering that he’d noticed and cared enough to ask, she wasn’t in a rush to tell him about her vision. Sure she was, maybe, offering something that could be misconstrued as friendship, but that didn’t mean that she trusted him. "Disappointing; but maybe you’ll eventually work it out," she hummed, knowing full well that it would be impossible for him to realize unless she made a comment. As if to mock him a little about it further, she made a point to study him closer—catching up on his smirk and throwing back one of her own. "So how old are you anyway. Fifteen?"

Karkat was relieved that he’d either managed to smoothly change the subject, or Terezi was so disinterested in his life that she didn’t comment on the revelation that he was from around here—he didn’t want to talk about that subject at all, even if the two of them were sort of getting along at the moment. He decided to ignore her comment on learning to make his own coin, unsure how to answer it when the facts were that he didn’t have any talents that made coin aside from thieving, and even then he wouldn’t exactly call himself talented in that regard. He let it slide, eyes narrowing in confusion as she giggled over her bizarre taste in drink. Terezi was a weird girl though, and maybe it went without saying that her taste in drinks, and maybe food too, would match—either way, he’d keep an eye on the way she ate when she got to choose her meals, determined to figure out the mystery she was presenting him, even if it was a dumb and unimportant one.

His eyebrows raised at her question—or more accurately, at her guess, before they fell back down into a scowl as he was pretty sure that it was more an insult than an honest guess at his age. “Fifteen? Seriously?” He rolled his eyes, biting his tongue on all the reasons why her guess was illogical and just sighed loudly, leaning his cheek against his palm exhaustedly. “I’m eighteen,” he grumbled, eyes narrowing even thinner as he spoke. “And what about you, how old are you, out on your own and traveling Skyrim to take down all the criminals in the world?” There was a bit more on the tip of his tongue, leaning towards remarking on the childishness of her quest, but he figured he was pushing things far enough as it was—he just hoped he wouldn’t come off too snarky; before the Kanaya incident a bit of bantering would be a fine way to talk, but now he felt more like he was walking a thin line between teasing and upsetting her. “You’re probably still older than me, right? Even if I’m not fifteen,” he added, trying to smooth things over a bit.

"Well shit!" Terezi cackled, glancing over Karkat’s height and build in comparison to her’s once again. "Maybe you should have ordered two bowls; and don’t take that tone with me! You don’t really have room to imply that I can’t take out all the criminals when you are a criminal in my possession," she tutted, brushing off his tone now that she felt a little more confident in herself. Besides, even if she still had issues, it was evident enough that Karkat was picking up on it. The best way to proceed would be to fake it at all times, and stop him—or more importantly, any of his friends—from feeling like they had any level of control over her. To be autonomous was the ideal goal; if she stopped showing commitment to things, then the harder it would be to find things to insult and hurt her about.

"I could lie to you and say that I’m younger than you, or much older than you. I guess it depends on whether I want to hurt your pride or intimidate you—however, I think that giving you my real age will achieve the former effect anyway. Somehow, I’m the same age as you, although my growth has been a vast and continuous progress." She briefly wondered where Karkat’s short height came from, considering his complex of ‘you can’t understand my hardships’, add with the new information of his origin. If Terezi could only gain muscle in accordance to over-eating and exercising, then surely people had to stop growing if they didn’t have food—a classic sign of poverty. She pursed her lips as she thought over it, having to consider the possibility that he was just genetically short and she was jumping to conclusions. In any case, she was wary that she might have pushed him too far and personal. "I was pretty lanky as a child though. I only started growing when I started using a sword. I’m guessing you don’t want to be too heavy if you’re good with a bow." Or that you wouldn’t want to be too heavy as a thief, she privately added—but managed to refrain from saying.

Learning that they were in fact, the same age, had Karkat reeling with embarrassment over his height, and still over her implication that he came off as a fifteen year old boy, but it did make him wonder if she had any experience at all with Dunmer. Granted, he was short even among his own, but not as short as he was next to her. His kind were not the tallest around, although they still managed to see the tops of Bosmer’s heads, and Khajiit. “I don’t care,” Karkat replied hastily, only realizing once the words were already out of his mouth that saying he didn’t care in a situation like this likely indicated the exact opposite meaning, and he huffed, trying not to show too much frustration on his face for the sake of not letting her be right. “Dunmer aren’t a tall people, you know? And Redguards are always all about their combat prowess and their endless stamina; how is it surprising to anyone that a race built for physical combat is taller than a race built for, I dunno, hiding behind their tall companions and casting spells? It isn’t, that’s how.”

Terezi’s smirk widened as Karkat said that he didn’t care, evidencing the complete opposite. It was nice to have another upper-hand on him again, especially when there was nothing either of them could do to make up the difference. “I know a Dunmer and he’s taller than me, although he’s pretty lanky too,” she grinned, rather fond of Sollux—especially in comparison to the Dunmer that she was currently stuck with. “Plus you’re making a gross generalization of your race—and mine too. Not all Redguards are like me! You saw Rose right? Elegant and pretty, she’s never picked up a sword in her life.” Terezi pulled a face at her words, always slightly envious of that fact. “Besides, my friend was from the Gray Quarter too—your defense is stupid.” As fun as it was winding up Karkat, if she pushed things too personal then they’d be back to square one again.

Karkat was surprised to learn that Terezi did know another Dunmer, eyebrows knitting together with curiosity when she mentioned that he was from the Gray Quarter, almost sure that as long as they weren’t much younger or older than him, he would know any Dunmer who had come from the Gray Quarter. However, asking about her friend seemed risky, and it was possible that maybe the friend had told her about Karkat’s family, even if she didn’t realize he was talking about Karkat. Fishing for answers was a dangerous game that he wasn’t willing to play today, so he simply shrugged off her argument; it wasn’t as if he could have won, anyway.

Annoyed that even his attempt at proving he didn’t care came off sounding like a whiny child, Karkat tried to focus the conversation more towards the rest of what she was saying and just maybe step away from their heights all together. “To be honest, I never intended to be good with a bow. Although you do need to be strong to use them, it’s really hard to pull back the string with enough force to kill someone with an arrow, you know. I guess not as strong as using a sword, but…” he shrugged, fingers idling fiddling with the hilt on his dagger. “I was lanky too; all of us were, we’re all meant to be magic users. I was never going to consider replacing magicka with a sword—can you even picture a muscular Dunmer with a big, heavy sword? So, daggers for quick, close-ranged attacks, and the arrows are long distance, sort of like spells…” he sighed, shrugging again and glancing towards the kitchen, even more impatient for his horker stew now that they were sort of talking about their pasts. “Not as good as magicka, not as… respectable, but it was the best I could do.”

"Different muscles, huh?" Terezi hummed, still secretly impressed by Karkat’s skill. Although she loved her sword for the sentimental value, it wasn’t her weapon of choice. She wasn’t really sure that any weapon would be her choice, considering that she probably would have preferred diplomacy over fighting—but the past couldn’t be changed for wistful thinking, and it was through her experiences that she had come to respect archery. "I like that though," she added, able to be sincere about archery itself if she wasn’t explicitly directing it at Karkat. "Swords aren’t really an art, and speed doesn’t exactly matter. Scrawny city girls totally suck at it; I think I’m pretty biased against swords thanks to that," she smiled, almost in a subconscious effort to try and form some kind of connection over their experiences. She laughed a little at his imagery, but felt oddly impressed by his reasoning and logic behind his choices in weapons. There was almost no flaws in his approach, and he was good at what he did. She couldn’t understand why he’d all but gone for the easy way out, when he was clearly talented and driven. "Well, at least you have some way of fighting," she instead settled on, uncomfortable with expressing her honest thoughts.

"Well, no one else thinks it’s anything special," he shrugged, smiling somewhat bitterly at the whole conversation. "Even if you could do both, people didn’t understand why you’d want to, you know? Why learn to shoot an arrow at that target when you could just use a spell? It’s just not how Dunmer do things. So… usually, even if you’re not dealing with a Dunmer, people see me and assume I can do magic, just like you did, and then… I have to take out a bow to hit someone far away; take away my weapons and I’m useless… just, all in all, there’s not much to respect about a Dunmer who can’t do magic, even if they found some way to sort of make up for it." Karkat sighed, dragging his finger along the edge of the table and keeping his eyes down. "But thanks, I guess."

The words that Karkat spoke were truthful from his point of view, but lies from Terezi’s. It was ridiculous to think that someone’s worth purely came from abilities of their race. Even if she had issues with Karkat, she couldn’t deny that he was talented because he had initiative. The act of him overcoming what was, essentially, a disability was the greater achievement that overshadowed the issue in the first place. As someone who had also had to re-adjust her whole life to such a thing, it was difficult to be passive and neutral about Karkat’s opinion of himself. It wasn’t necessarily that she wanted Karkat to feel better, but that she strongly objected to anyone in his position feeling that way about themselves. It was that strange feeling of solidarity that clashed with his occupation—a thief; disgusting and damned. Only he deserved to feel terrible because he was a thief, not because of physical constraints.

"I think you’re wrong," Terezi suddenly spoke, knowing that she was probably overstepping a boundary or that he’d take what he was saying the wrong way—but that didn’t matter. "You can’t just rely on what you think you deserve just for being born—such as sight, or magicka: they can be very easily taken away or denied. Things that grow twisted have more strength than things that grow straight. The person who goes the extra mile is worth more than the person who’s never had to, or even bothered to. You’re just looking at things the wrong way." In all honestly, she thought he was looking at things the wrong way because he was so caught up in his own self-pity—but telling him such wouldn’t help, and would only make him more defensive. Plus, it wasn’t as if she’d never done the same as him. "Jeez, it’s almost as if you’re blind." A grin stretched its way across her features, as if to offer a light-hearted way out of the way the conversation had turned.

Eyebrows knit together as Terezi argued his point, and for a moment, he didn’t understand why. What did it matter to her what his kind thought of him thanks to his shortcomings, or even what he thought of himself thanks to that—but when she mentioned sight, he started to understand where she was going with things, and felt a little worse complaining about not being able to cast spells when she could barely see. “I guess,” he conceded, able to agree at least that her mastery of swords and even just handling herself was more than just impressive for her handicap, even if he didn’t feel the same way about his own. He could have argued the case more, brought up trying to compete with a prodigy during his childhood and how not only the Dark Elves but also the people of Winterhold cared much more for someone with a natural gift for their art than someone who found a way around it, but she was clearly trying to lighten the mood, even possibly cheer him up, and he supposed, for now, he would take that.

In the quiet inn, even the slightest noise was noticeable, such as the door creaking open to let in another guest, but in case anyone had missed the sound of the door, the visitor didn’t hesitate to announce himself, either. “Man, what all up and happened here? Someone throw a motherfuckin’ crazy party and all forgot to invite me?” At the sound of the voice and the idiotic dribble it was producing, Karkat tensed, muttered a curse under his breath and trying to stay as still as possible in hopes he might be overlooked, and he hoped Terezi had the sense to do the same, although there was little reason she would. “Whoa, talk about miracles! Look who it is!” He should have known trying to be low-key wouldn’t work, that hunching his shoulders and keeping his head down wouldn’t be enough to stay unnoticed, and as the Orc’s hand fell on his shoulder, he flinched at the contact, lips curling down into a heavy frown. “My best motherfuckin’ friend is here! Long time no see! And who’s this pretty chick you all forgot to tell me about, huh?”

A slow breath escaped Karkat’s lips and he ran his tongue slowly over his lips as he tried to react to the whole unexpected and unwanted situation that was playing out. “Hello Gamzee,” he replied tensely, not looking at the orc as he greeted him. “This is Terezi. We’re traveling together and that’s it. Terezi, this is my… someone I know but not by choice, or preference, even. His name is Gamzee.” Just as Karkat finished his diplomatic introductions, the innkeeper walked over, balancing bowls, bottles and cups, and set down the two stews, the bottle of wine and two cups, explaining that the apple pie would be out shortly before she headed back to the kitchen. “Aw sweet, what’re we havin’?” Gamzee asked, reaching across the table and plucking a vegetable chunk from Terezi’s stew. “Oh shit man, that soup must be made of miracles!”

Terezi’s attention was piqued behind her, towards the entrance of the inn and the orc who had just announced his presence. Said Orc seemed to know Karkat who, strangely, didn’t seem to want to know the orc. She giggled as he referred to her as a pretty chick, if only for the sake of being an annoyance to Karkat. “Gamzee,” Terezi repeated politely, having a feeling that she was going to get on with the Orc if he frustrated Karkat so much. Before she had a chance to press questions, their food was brought out and Terezi was excited to finally eat something of her favourite colour again.

It was with the food that Terezi slowly realized that she wasn’t going to get on so great with Gamzee, watching with a horrified expression as he started fishing around with her soup. She quickly turned to stare out Karkat, disgust and anger clear on her face. She quietly seethed as she pulled a cup closer to her, grabbing the wine as well and pouring herself a healthy amount—especially if this was the evening she was going to be commended to. Was it impossible for Karkat to have one friend that was bearable? He’d seemed more than happy with Tavros, who had nothing but manners and kindness for Karkat. In return, Terezi ended up with a vampire trying to kill her and an ill-mannered Orc stealing her food. “I wouldn’t know,” she narrowed her eyes, the meaning behind the action still important even if she was blind. “I haven’t eaten it yet.” She wasn’t actually sure if she intended to eat it anymore, with no idea where his hands had been.

For a few beautiful seconds, Karkat was excited by the prospect of someone annoying Terezi more than he was, and therefore getting some heat off his back—but it seemed that he was to blame for Gamzee’s appearance somehow, as if he’d sent out smoke signals or messenger hawks to find the biggest fucking idiot he knew to come and torment his captor. He rolled his eyes when she glared at him, somewhat insulted that she was going to place the blame on him for this—as it was, Gamzee had probably only turned up in Kynesgrove because he saw all the smoke from the dragon attack, so technically speaking it was probably her beloved beasts at fault here. But the only thing you could do with Gamzee was ignore him, so he picked up his spoon and started in on his own stew, before his ‘friend’ could start picking at that.

"Oh, right," the Orc laughed, realizing he had managed to get a taste of the soup before she had. "Well don’t let me stop you, you gotta have a taste, it’s all kinds of wicked." With that, Gamzee reached for her spoon, dipping it gracelessly into her soup and then moving in towards her mouth with it while Karkat could only hold his breath and watch in terror. "Open up and give it a taste, sis!" Karkat could only imagine how angry the gesture made her, but he could plainly see her hand shift towards the hilt of her sword while another frighteningly specific threat fell from her tongue, and Karkat grabbed Gamzee’s wrist, forcing him to release the spoon and pulled him back towards the other side of the table while the Orc merely looked on all of this in confusion.

"Look, look, okay, here," he reached for Terezi’s bowl and pulled it towards Gamzee, as it was plainly clear that Terezi wasn’t going to touch it after the Orc’s fingers had been in it, and he pushed his own bowl towards the Dragonborn, hoping she would accept the arrangement. "How’s that? You can dig your fingers into that soup all you want, but you have to stick with just your soup, okay? And Terezi can have mine, I’m not that hungry," he lied, nudging his bowl towards Terezi in an effort to keep his friend from losing his organs. "Okay, we good? Yeah? Great," he grumbled, eyes wandering back towards the horker stew he’d waiting so patiently for that Terezi likely wouldn’t even really enjoy, before he reached for his cup, glancing towards Terezi to make sure he was allowed; once she approved, he poured himself a bit, although he wasn’t sure why he expected to be able to drink it. "Aw, thanks bro!" Gamzee exclaimed, taking the cup Karkat had poured and drinking at least half of it in one swig. Defeated, Karkat let himself slump against the wall and closed his eyes, hoping that if he focused his energy on sending telepathic ‘go aways’ to Gamzee, maybe the Orc would actually listen and excuse himself.

Terezi was somewhat surprised when Karkat passed her his own bowl, noting that he didn’t even exchange it for hers—instead giving it to Gamzee. Although his selflessness was nice, she wasn’t paying so that Gamzee could eat. Still, she was hungry, and food was food. She looked back up from the bowl in time to see Gamzee take the wine from Karkat, increasing her anger again. She took a swig of the wine before eating, at least taking some satisfaction in the taste. It had been too long since she’d had something red to consume, although she was sure that Gamzee’s blood could constitute as a meal at the rate they were going at. Then she pushed the cup towards Karkat, making sure to keep it out of Gamzee’s reach. “What exactly was it that you wanted?” She asked, tone curt.

While Karkat tried to discreetly accept the cup from Terezi without Gamzee noticing, the Orc quickly downed the soup, casting the occasional longing glance for the horker stew that Karkat had given up but managing to keep to one entree this time. “Huh? Man, I just rolled into town for a place to rest my head and some grub to fill my empty stomach,” Gamzee replied, smiling at her in a manner that suggested he was completely oblivious to her anger and frustration with him. Scooping up another mouthful of the soup, he seemed to pause the consider something briefly before he nodded to himself, setting the spoon down for a moment. “But since you all were nice enough to up and share your meal with a brother, I’m gonna share something with you—only I guess you can’t eat what I’m sharin’, so that might be a bit of a bummer. Anyway, north of here is Windhelm, right? There’s been talk on the streets about some kinds of crazy stuff going on in that city lately. Ain’t no order there anymore,” he told them, glancing at Karkat sadly and shaking his head while Karkat tried to look as unaffected by what he knew Gamzee was implying as possible.

"But what I heard is that," and he paused here, leaning across the table so the Dragonborn would be able to hear him all right when he lowered his voice to a whisper—wouldn’t want all the other nonexistent guests to hear him, after all. "There’s a kid in the city, what all up and lost his family, and he’s all filled with a rage. Wants revenge, wants blood. They say he’s locked up in his old family home with a corpse, chanting day and night for death. For the Dark Brotherhood." He leaned back again and scanned their faces for reactions, acting as though he was telling a scary story and not sharing a truth with them. "Don’t know how true all the talk is, ‘course. Haven’t had the guts to go and see for myself. Something weird about people who pay for death ‘stead of go out and do it themselves, right? Anyway, thought you guys might be interested, sounds pretty spooky right? Maybe you wanna avoid Windhelm until all the weirdos crawl back into the woodwork, huh? Haha," he laughed, elbowing Karkat when the Dunmer didn’t react to his hilarious joke. "But hey, thanks for the food! I’m all kinds of grateful I miraculously ran into you guys—maybe we’ll see each other again? ‘Til then bro, sis." And with that, Gamzee dipped his head and found the innkeeper, before he slunk off to go rest his head and digest all the food he had essentially stolen.

While Terezi wasn’t overly interested in Gamzee’s words of wisdom, she knew better than to ignore whatever he was about to say—just because she disliked someone, and thought their mental health was deteriorated, didn’t mean that they couldn’t have loose lips about places of interest. Disinterest was hard to fake when her lips parted in thought at the Dark Brotherhood—especially with a child involved, and a child with a corpse, no less. Her thoughts ran so fast that Gamzee suddenly leaving didn’t seem strange or odd, too occupied with Windhelm. She didn’t bother him with a reply, seeing as how he was more than indebted to her for eating her precious soup.

Nudging Terezi’s cup back to her and picking his own, abandoned cup back up, Karkat looked to Terezi, frowning at the strange events that had just transpired. “Sorry about that, I can’t stand that guy. He literally tried to ransack a friend of mine once because he assumed she had what he wanted and refused to sell it to him and I made him leave and then he was like, ‘oh man, I feel all up and spiritually connected with you brother, like all the fates aligned to help us meet,’ and then probably some bullshit about miracles. I didn’t think he was stupid enough to eat your food, and then try to fucking feed it to you, what even was that? Anyway… I think we should avoid all the shit in Windhelm, don’t you? I know you have some… weird vendetta against criminals but mixing up with the Dark Brotherhood is just a bad idea, and anyway, we don’t even know how true it was, are we really gonna trust that guy?” Karkat sort of hated Gamzee for even suggesting something like this—though he probably meant it harmlessly, or maybe as a warning to avoid the city, Karkat doubted Terezi was going to walk away from a challenge, and he didn’t want to have to wander his hometown with her. There was plenty he didn’t want her to see, and even worse, he was almost positive he knew what child Gamzee was referring to, which was more of his messy past that he didn’t want revealed to her. “It just sounds too dangerous,” he insisted, pleading Terezi would be rational for once in her life.

She had no idea what Karkat was talking about with ransacking and miracles, and the story of how he came to be associated with Gamzee was of no interest her—at least not at that point of time. She carefully took a few more spoonfuls of soup as he continued babbling, dissuading her from Windhelm and the Dark Brotherhood. “He’s your friend; you trusted your previous friend enough to let her try and kill me. He seems harmless in comparison,” she coolly responded, placing the spoon back into the half-empty bowl and pushing it back towards Karkat. The way she saw it, she had three options. The first was to continue with Delphine, which wasn’t exactly appealing. The second was to go to Windhelm, and the third was to go back to Riften and start over with the Thieves Guild. The third was still tricky with not knowing where she stood, and her control over Karkat wasn’t enough to give her confidence with him not doing something stupid. To her, the second option seemed most logical—it was the most interesting too. “I’ve never been to Windhelm,” she mused, picking her cup back up again and topping up the wine. “Want to go home?” Terezi slowly grinned, dangerous with a thirst for the mystery that Gamzee had spoken of.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> just figured out i'm allowed images in the code!  
> here's gamzee, [click here for his bio ](http://to-tundra.tumblr.com/gamzee) :)


	12. windhelm i

Setting off on a full stomach and a night of rest did much better for Terezi’s mood, which meant that the hardships of the previous day had been forgotten about in favour of teasing Karkat for all of their journey. Although she was mildly content, it was still cold and the prospect of staying in a city that was populated around snow and freezing to death wasn’t exactly the kind of climate she was hoping for. Still, the prospect of a good mystery was too much for her to pass up because of silly issues with weather and such—although Karkat’s clothes looked a lot more warmer, which was probably something she had to think about investing in if they were going to be in the cold for a while longer. She wanted to know as much information as she could, and the only person nearby who could provide such detail was Karkat. Asking about the boy in question proved pointless, and so did anything else that she asked him about—he was too quiet and dodged around everything she asked.

Terezi almost felt bad then, reflecting on the fact that she herself hadn’t been back to her hometown since she’d left—but the circumstances had been different; it would be stupid to think that Karkat’s parents had suffered the same fate as her own. With no help from Captain Miserable, Terezi was left to draw back on what she knew from her mother, which wasn’t very positive. She hadn’t ever been allowed to visit, instead being put into the care of Vriska or Tavros’ parents for the week. Common knowledge was enough to know that minorities could never live there, which was her reasoning for why Karkat didn’t want to go back, and why he was so small and weak. No amount of speculation would make a difference until she was actually there, and as they approached it was clear what the atmosphere was like from the get-go. It was like a fortress, locked up tight with a gate that made Terezi slightly uncomfortable to cross through.

The city itself had a problem in structure, let alone attitudes. Terezi could only see white and black, merged against each other to get a strange illusion that she’d stepped into a monochrome society. It didn’t take long to find the residence through asking around, with the townsfolk seeming cautious. Shrugging it off, Terezi took lead with taking the first right—unknowingly missing the first right and taking the second. The residence suddenly shifted from wide open space to cramped conditions, and even her vision could see that it was in dire need of some TLC.

Karkat wasn’t sure why Terezi skipped the first right, actually forgetting that she wasn’t a native and likely didn’t know where she was going too well and assuming she was going to make them walk through the Gray Quarter for the purpose of dragging Karkat through his old life, and learning new ways to humiliate and put him down if he got too cocky again. He followed behind her slowly, trying to keep his head down and stay unnoticed. That didn’t work so well once they actually wandered into the Gray Quarter, with people recognizing him and approaching him, and he wished, not for the first time, that puberty had done a little better at making him grow up from how he looked when he was 12. “Yeah, I’ve been fine,” he murmured to the Dunmer who asked how he’d been doing since he had to leave, how his life was going, how he was feeling, etc. Having been caught up by people he used to know, he hurried to catch back up to Terezi, trying to avoid the eyes of people who hadn’t noticed him.

“Is this where you lived?”

“Yeah. Well, in this general area. All the dark elves in the city lived here so, obviously I did too.” He paused, glancing around the slums and letting out a heavy sigh. Was there even a point keeping it from her anymore? If she was already here, she already knew more about him than he wanted her to know, why not share the whole story? “Do you want to see my actual house, where I actually used to live?”

Once she replied with a curious ‘sure,’ Karkat led her through the thin street until he found where his old house was, or where it used to be, turning to look at her before nodding towards it. “Right there,” he said, gesturing towards an abandoned, broken down building, stained black from where fire had destroyed most of the interior and just barely still standing. “The Nords burned it down after my parents died, and it destroyed everything I owned and everything I had left of them. My dad had a library; I’d spend every day in there. All the book are just dust now. Oh, and then, I had to live at the Cornerclub for a while,” he added, turning to point to the local pub and inn a little ways down the road. “They were nice enough to let me stay even though I didn’t have any coin.”

Terezi wasn’t sure what Karkat was going to gain from showing her his old house—did he want pity points for his poor orphan routine? Not having a home any more wasn’t exactly a small problem for a number of people in Skyrim, including Karkat and Terezi. Still, they had time to kill so she was fine with indulging him—giving a curious ‘sure’ to see where he was heading with it. She followed him carefully, nose wrinkling at the strongest source of black that Windhelm had to offer. Black was always such a foul colour to smell, but it didn’t outweigh the memories of how burnt wood used to smell as she and her friends played dangerously in the forest, or how it had smelt burning Vriska. She wondered if he had been there when it was burnt—if he ever associated fire with losing his home and, to an extent, his family.

Among the rubble was Karkat’s passion for reading, completely burnt into nothing. It was conflicting to stare at: to have the face the evidence of why Karkat was a thief. It was easier to think of everyone as black and white: bad or good. She didn’t want to think of him as anything else, let alone as a person with a story and motives and reasons. It had been a mistake to respect him for his abilities, and even worse to get along with him when he’d helped her out. It left her able to look at his home and feel guilty, and feel upset for everything he didn’t have and everything that was left of what he should have had. The question on her lips was ‘why?’. She couldn’t see any reason to burn down someone’s house simply because of racism. Did his parents step out of line? If they were similar to Karkat in personality and temperament, then she didn’t believe it was too much of a stretch to presume so. Still, it seemed too harsh—at least she’d had the chance to recover her things, even though she’d only been able to grab vital equipment.

Karkat fell quiet after that, glancing back towards where his house used to be and shifting his weight between his heels and his toes for a moment while he tried to come to a decision. Surely she was already curious about why the Nords had burned his house down—racism was one thing but with his family already dead, it didn’t seem necessary to burn their house down as well, if they were just an ordinary family. And he’d mentioned the library, which he’d probably mentioned before, but it still didn’t seem like a normal thing for a Dunmer family living in slums like this to possess. Chances were, she knew he didn’t come from an ordinary family, at this point. He turned towards her again before he dropped his gaze to the cobblestone beneath his feet and smiled, just slightly. “Remember how you asked me if my parents died brutally, if I watched them die?” He looked back up at her, shrugged as he glanced over his shoulder for a moment and then turned back to meet her eyes. “Do you want to see where they died?”

Terezi didn’t react to his question, even though the building behind her left her a little uncomfortable. It was hard to distinguish whether this was from empathy, or from how close it hit to her own background—although she knew deep down that it was probably both. It wasn’t exactly as if she had a choice to say no, and morbid curiosity had driven her to Windhelm in the first place: if Karkat wanted to take her to the murder sites of his parents then she wasn’t exactly too squeamish or polite to say no. Part of her wanted to know, and part of her wanted to see his reaction. Maybe she was most agreeable due to the conflicting way her mind was trying to process Karkat—unable to put him into any category that she knew. “Show me,” she nodded, void of any indication of emotions.

Wordlessly, Karkat nodded, somewhat pleased she’d agreed to it because maybe it would be good to get it off his chest—it wasn’t the sort of thing he spoke about even to people who knew a lot about his past. Not wanting to have to help her navigate through the thin routes of the Gray Quarter or constantly check behind him to be sure she was keeping up, he took her wrist and pulled her along through the streets before he took a right, stopping them in an alley between the main part of town and the slums. “We found my mom’s body here; well, not us, but other Dunmer, and they came and found us. She’d been beaten to death, and then they just left her body here, they didn’t even try to hide it—and there was blood splatter here too so, it’s not like they dragged her here as if this alley was their hiding place. We reported her death to the city guards as a murder, and you know what? They said it looked like an accident to them. There wasn’t enough evidence to prove it was a murder and with a war going on, they didn’t have guards to waste on accidents.” He shook his head, rolling his eyes. “Even if there wasn’t evidence to convict someone there was no way in Oblivion you could look at her and say whatever had happened had been an accident.”

He paused for a moment to give Terezi time to take it in before he took her wrist again, leading her back to the main part of town, past Candlehearth Hall and up the steps, towards the Palace of Kings. “This is where I watched my father die,” he told her, releasing her and glancing around the large area, mostly empty aside from city guards and the occasional beggar now. “It was sort of a town square here, where Ulfric would come out to address the people—the Nords, really, but, whatever. There was a stage set up for his execution, and Ulfric himself was here to attend, despite all the planning he had to do for the war. The Dunmer were all forced to come, even though he never wanted us around for anything else. He was bound and gagged—he wasn’t allowed last words because Ulfric knew he would use them to inspire the rest of us while he was trying to break our spirits. All the Nords in the village were here, too; you could hear more cheering than mourning when they finally brought down the axe. And then they put his head on a pike outside the Gray Quarter, as a warning to us, so we’d never think ourselves equal again.” Karkat ran his tongue over his dry lips, falling silent and simply staring out over the courtyard, not showing any real sign of being upset over what he was revealing to her. Eventually, he turned his gaze away from the palace, looking over to Terezi for her reaction.

It was strange to think that such a huge stage had been set up for his father, especially when Karkat hadn’t spoken of what exactly his father had done wrong. All at once, she realized that she knew the execution he was talking about, having spent hours trying to get as much information on the death as possible. She had mourned that man’s death almost as much as she had mourned her mother’s—because his values had meant the world to the most important person in Terezi’s life, and that reality would never be achieved. She suddenly knew what was happening and who Karkat was, it was as clear to anyone who he was and yet it was so slow to catch up in her mind—as if she still had to shield herself from the reality: because she couldn’t cope with knowing, or understanding.

As soon as he said equal, Terezi was more than sure she knew who he was—or more, who his father was. Her mouth went dry as she stared at him, horror settling in her stomach at who exactly she had with her, who exactly she’d taken hostage and who exactly she’d almost killed. It explained why he’d been interested in her necklace, and why he’d grown irritated over it when she’d questioned him possessing it. She’d been travelling around with the son of the man her mother had adored, who had been the reason for her mother constantly going to Windhelm, and the man who had inspired the morals that had been ingrained into Terezi. His home had been burnt because of his father’s inspiration, his father had such a vast library to account for his teachings: maybe even where he was so-well educated from in the first place. Her head still spun, and the whole gravity of the situation suddenly hit her.

"Karkat Vantas," Terezi finally spoke, the words falling from her in a breath of realization.

Karkat looked at her when she said his name, acknowledging that he had been right before when he assumed that carrying around the necklace meant she knew about his father, and that revealing his last name to her would have revealed much more than that to her. “Sorry I didn’t tell you—I figured you’d think it’s weird I didn’t give a last name eventually but my dad made a lot of enemies. Enough people want me dead as it is, I don’t need more people after me just because of a name. Especially around the human races,” he informed her, shrugging as a weak gesture of apology. “Obviously I realized you weren’t like that once I saw the necklace but then it was just weird to be like, wow, you have that? I’m his son, by the way. Fun fact. You know.” He rubbed his arm, glancing idly over the courtyard again and letting his eyes linger on the palace for a long moment. “Didn’t seem like a good time to bring it up again, and I guess there wasn’t a need to, either… but I don’t know, maybe it at least gives some color to the sad orphan boy story. And if you want to know more about him I guess it wouldn’t kill me to tell you.”

He took a deep breath, a little more uncomfortable now that they were veering into the more personal side of how the deaths had affected him, but he gathered himself quickly, intent on moving on to a new topic before she actually had a chance to ask him any more about his family or his father. “Anyway, you wanted to find the Dark Brotherhood kid, right? I still think this is a bad idea and I still don’t think you should get involved but if you’re really sure you want to, I know where his house is.” He raised an eyebrow, finally pausing long enough to allow for a reply from her.

Terezi still reeled from his confirmation, totally lost with herself. She was looking at Karkat Vantas and, more than that, she had pretty much abused him. She didn’t know how to proceed with the conversation, or even herself. If she thought about it, knowing more about Karkat’s father would have been nice. She had been too young to completely understand what was happening when he was alive, but with age and better knowledge of the world she was sure that she would have liked to have known more about him—especially because she wanted to know more about her own parent in the process. However, it was all well and good Karkat offering, but Terezi didn’t actually think he meant it. He all but hurried into his change of conversation and, for once, she didn’t stop him. It would have been wrong to prod and tease, and he’d opened up for her for reasons she still didn’t understand.

She didn’t understand why he was apologizing either, when had he ever been obligated to tell her? They weren’t friends, and knowing such information didn’t put her in danger or help her in any way. Allowing Karkat space to move on from what he had told her, Terezi was fine with letting him leading the way to the residence—especially now that they were in a completely different point of the city. “I still want to do it,” she told him, full of resolve to carry on. “So be useful and show me where his house is.” At least going back to teasing him about doing tasks and such was a step back into their normality, offering him the chance to either take it and leave his issues aside for the day, or for him to bitch her out on being insensitive.

Karkat was glad she didn’t pry about his past, though he was still beating himself up about getting weird towards the end of it. Apologizing had been stupid, it wasn’t as if Terezi saw him as more than the prisoner she was dragging around, but he could hope that least, that she would take it to mean something like what he’d meant when he apologized for not telling her about Kanaya, although the circumstances had clearly been quite different there seeing as Kanaya had tried to kill her and his dead father and mother weren’t about to do that… but lingering on it wasn’t going to make him feel any better, so he lead Terezi back through the town, passing Candlehearth Hall and into the pathway that she’d missed when she’d first entered.

They arrived at the Aretino House before long, Karkat’s pace slowing anxiously at the house and pacing around it to get a good look at it. “Well, this is the place, I think. Gamzee didn’t give us a name but the kid in here; Aventus, lost his mom and then got shipped off to Honorhall Orphanage and then I guess ran away, and came back here to pray to the Dark Brotherhood.” His eyes spotted a carving, and he knelt to examine it, body tensing as he recognized the mark for danger, likely left by another guild member warning to avoid the Brotherhood. “I really don’t think we should do this,” he repeated, hoping that maybe if he said it enough times, Terezi would finally get through her thick skull to listen to him for once.

Terezi inspected the residence over as Karkat gave her a small brief, unable to find anything particular about the house from the outside. “Is this normal behaviour in Windhelm?” She frowned, unsure how a child would even come to such conclusions about how to handle matters. Still, it wasn’t as if Aradia and Vriska had been perfect when it came to messing with dead things—or more that the latter had a problem with keeping things alive—but had the two of them really been a danger to anyone but themselves? They probably couldn’t have done much damage to adults, which left Terezi more confident about the situation. She frowned slightly as Karkat started looking at something at a lower level, unable to distinguish what exactly he was looking at. “Then stop thinking: or at least don’t do it aloud,” Terezi sighed, turning towards the house. It would be stupid to knock on the door and expect a reply, so she didn’t bother. Instead, she drew out her smaller sword and stood back from the door itself, turning the sword around and pushing the handle of it against the door. She wasn’t stupid enough to simply push it open and pray that nothing was behind it. Luckily, or rather unluckily, she couldn’t get the door open at all. With an aggravated ‘tch’, she put her sword back again and sighed. “I can’t believe I’m doing this,” Terezi muttered, sighing again as she couldn’t quickly come up with an alternative. “Do you pick houses any better than you do stalls?”

There was a sense of irony in the fact that after all this, all they’d been through, now Terezi needed his help and not only did she need his help, but she needed his help to do something illegal, and while he didn’t exactly like being a criminal, there was just something magical about the Dragonborn asking him to commit a crime for her. “Can you watch to make sure no one sees me commit this atrocious crime? If I get dragged off the jail you’ll have to pick it yourself and we wouldn’t want that.” He hoped she understood that he was teasing—after everything he’d revealed, getting back to a point where they could comfortably banter with each other seemed ideal, and it seemed to be where she was trying to lead things, unless she really was heartless. He fished around his pockets, hoping she hadn’t gotten all his picks off of him when she’d made him drop his stuff; they were small and easy to conceal, and so he wasn’t that surprised when he located a few—but he could only feel four, which didn’t leave him many chances, and he couldn’t imagine what he would have to hear if he couldn’t manage the lock. Taking a slow breath to steady himself, he leaned close to the door, took a quick glance around for any sign of others, and started in on the lock.

To his surprise and delight, the lock clicked into place very easily, and he removed his lockpick, pocketing it proudly and turning the handle slowly and quietly to make certain he’d unlocked it. “Okay, got it. Do you want me to go in with you or do you want me to stand watch?” he asked, praying that she would let him stand watch although he seriously doubted she would trust him not to run off in a city he knew like the back of his hand. But that wasn’t what it was about, for him, and it wasn’t even about the fear of the Dark Brotherhood. He knew Aventus Aretino, and more than likely, Aventus would remember him if he saw him. The few pieces of his past that were unknown to her could easily be through those doors and he didn’t want Aventus to give them to her. But there was little he could do if she told him to come along—playing the coward, whether or not it was true, wouldn’t be enough to earn Terezi’s pity, and on the contrary, she would probably force him along for the sake of humiliating him. The best he could do was keep his head down and hope Aventus didn’t notice him.

"Good job," she quickly acknowledged as the door opened, internally sighing at her loss of morals for the moment. With that, Terezi looked him over once again as he protested for the hundredth time that day. Was there something more to his story that was stopping him from entering the house? She assumed not, seeing as the shock factor of his tour couldn’t be out beaten at this point—telling her would be easy. "What if I need another lock picked?" She raised an eyebrow at him, trying to seriously evaluate how detrimental it would be to take him into the house. Unable to call it, she shrugged and stepped inside—expecting him to follow regardless. The house was dark and steep, causing Terezi to move slowly and carefully as she tried to look around. She could hear chanting coming from upstairs, easily recognizable as a young boy.

It wasn’t until they hit the top of the stairs that the room became clearer to her. The living space still seemed to be dark and murky, leaving her unable to see the state of objects. On the other hand, a bright light was glowing from inside a smaller room, leading Terezi to move closer towards the sound of the chanting. She didn’t react to the skeleton on the floor, although she was curious over whether she was looking at human organs on the floor. It was as she took a step closer that the boy noticed her, instantly standing up and shouting that he’d known she would come. A little skeptical, Terezi began to hear him out—unsure what to think of the contract that he proposed.

Karkat stayed close to the wall, able to keep Terezi in his sight, though he couldn’t see Aventus, and he hoped that meant Aventus wouldn’t see or notice him, either. The house reeked of death—he wasn’t sure how the other two were able to stand it, although chances were, Aventus had been among it so long it probably didn’t bother him anymore. 

"The headmistress of that Orphanage is an evil, cruel woman. They call her Grelod the Kind. But she’s not kind. She’s terrible. To all of us. So I ran away, and came home. And performed the Black Sacrament. Now you’re here! And you can kill Grelod the Kind!" Aventus explained, and while Karkat hadn’t know who Aventus was performing the Black Sacrament to kill, it suddenly made a lot of sense. The woman was horrible to all the children in her care, and while Karkat figured that morals probably dictated they kill the woman, he wasn’t sure Terezi would agree to something like that. Even if she had no problem killing criminals, would this count? When Terezi asked for specifics, Aventus’ voice rose again. "She was horrible! She runs the Orphanage but she won’t let us get adopted. She wants us to stay there and stay miserable forever. She tells us no one will ever wants such terrible children anyway. She barely feeds us, makes us do all the chores, she doesn’t let us go outside much, and if she doesn’t like the way we behave, she locks us in a tiny little closet for hours! Please… I wouldn’t ask this if I wasn’t sure. I’ve never been more sure about anything in my entire life. Someone like Grelod doesn’t deserve to live one more day. She’s a monster. And all the other kids are still stuck with her…"

Karkat sighed, turning his head towards the door as Aventus pleaded with Terezi, remorseful that the most by-the-book girl in Skyrim had been the first with the guts to come inside and check out this matter with Aventus. It was true what he said—Grelod the Kind deserved to die for the horrors she’d inflicted on innocent children, but would Terezi see it that way? She would be committing a crime, committing a murder, and even if it was for the sake of what was right, would she be able to distinguish as much? If he was honest, her morals still confused him. But he hoped, at the very least, she wouldn’t consider Aventus a criminal for calling the Brotherhood. Maybe she would be merciful and let the boy go back to praying for the real assassins to turn up.

Terezi wasn’t really sure what kind of answers she had been looking for when she’d pressed for further information, but what she was left with wasn’t exactly in Grelod’s favour. Her lip curled in disgust as Aventus went on, unable to understand how someone could be around orphaned children so much if she, evidently, hated them so much. As much as she believed him, she was still slightly confused. What happened to those who had passed childhood and turned into adults—did they still remain at the orphanage? If not, why couldn’t he have one of them killed her? Even if he was somehow exaggerating about it, there was no harm in going to check things out. There was no condition that she had to kill Grelod, and there was no harm simply finding out if his claims were true—despite that fact she felt herself trusting him.

If anything, she felt bad for him, especially if the conditions had been so bad that he’d come back to the house where his parents no longer resided, which was more than Terezi could say for herself. She didn’t think a child could take death lightly if they had lived through the consequences of the end to another’s life, let alone misunderstanding the seriousness of something like the Dark Brotherhood. It didn’t look like the organization overly cared about his desires anyway: would it really hurt to go check things out? Terezi wasn’t exactly an assassin but she could kill, and she could kill happily if it was in the pursuit of justice. “Okay,” she agreed, trying not to make any promises, but then the kid asked her to hurry, explaining that he missed his friends in the orphanage—and she was sure that she’d made the right choice then.

With some assurance in herself and her decisions, Terezi went to lead Karkat out and ask for his input, only to find him sulking around the door frame still. Having no choice but to leave Aventus to, hopefully, clean up his house of human remains, she let Karkat follow her back downstairs and out of the house, refraining from commenting on his weird behaviour. Still, the attention he’d drawn to himself started to put questions into her mind—how was she supposed to go back to Riften with Karkat? She’d have to be stupid to think she’d manage it without him leaving or having her dealt with. On the other hand, leaving him with no coin in Windhelm was a little too harsh—although she could always promise to come back for him, seeing as he wouldn’t get very far while she was gone. “So what am I supposed to do with you?” She frowned, offering Karkat a chance to speak.

"What?" he raised his eyebrows, confused and surprised she was even asking him that. "I won’t stay here," he said firmly, hoping she understood that he hated being in Windhelm and telling him to wait here would not only be cruel, but he simply wouldn’t do it. He would either follow her regardless of what she wanted, or he would wait until she was halfway to Riften, steal enough to get by and get as far away from her as possible. No matter what she asked of him, he wasn’t going to stay in this city a moment longer than he needed to.

"Just let me go with you to Riften," he insisted, shrugging like he didn’t see what the issue with that was. "I know the city, so I could take us right to Honorhall—if you plan to go through with this I don’t know how you’re going to get Grelod alone, she’s around the children constantly but I could help distract them…" Karkat sighed, well-aware that he wasn’t coming up with enough good reasons, or any good reasons to be honest, to take him along. "I’m not going to run off," he added, no point beating around the bush anymore when it was more than clear that was the only reason she was considering leaving him behind. "Not if you take me to Riften. I wouldn’t even have enough time to get away, I’m sure you wouldn’t let us stay the night there, right? But I’m not going to stay here, even if you tell me to, okay?" He wasn’t lying to her, at this point he believed that she would hunt him down and kill him if she wanted to, and more than that, he wouldn’t have shared his past with her if he didn’t trust her at least a little. He told very few people his last name, and maybe she didn’t understand the significance of him telling her those things, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t there. "Just take me to Riften, I won’t go anywhere."

Karkat’s insistence not to stay in Windhelm was striking to Terezi, seeing as his issue was most certainly with the city itself—not with being unable to go back to Riften. His almost-panic left her feeling a little bad about questioning bringing him along; after all, she was the one who had dragged him to Windhelm in the first place. It was then that she wondered when her ability to simply shrug off poor orphan boys had disappeared, instead replaced with some revolting ability to have empathy. Maybe she just had a terrible case of transference by merging her past with Karkat’s. Or maybe it was because Karkat wasn’t terrible—even if she was still trying to ignore that possibility.

"Okay: relax, if you say ‘take me to Riften’ one more time then I’m going to eat your tongue," she teased, unsure if tongue was even edible. It would probably be too slimey to manage, even if it was. "We’ll go to Riften, and you know the deal if anything happens." Even if Terezi found herself trusting Karkat, she couldn’t let it be her downfall. There was still a chance that everything had been a set-up: that would be logical, and Terezi preferred the logical over emotions. No matter how sincere he seemed, she had to accept that he could lie or go back on his word at any moment. "Do you visit there regularly or something?" She frowned, attention drawn to his knowledge of how often Grelod was around the children, now that she was re-inspecting his previous words for reasons to doubt him.

Karkat hadn’t realized his slip until Terezi was prying at it, and he wasn’t sure how he could edge his way around it, either. “Uh…” He sighed, grimacing at the hole he’d dug himself into while fully aware that lying would only make it bigger. If he shrugged it off or lied, Terezi would lose her trust in him, and potentially choose to make him stay behind, if she felt he was lying and manipulating to get back to Riften so he could scurry away into the sewers like the rat that she probably still believed he was. At the same time, there wasn’t much point keeping it a secret. Unless they remained hidden for the entire course of the assassination, someone—be it Grelod, Constance, or the children—would see Karkat and reveal what he was hiding, and then Terezi would only be angrier with him, probably. Hiding the truth was only going to make things messy and he was getting tired of that.

"Sort of," he shrugged, sighing as he started away from the Aretino residence and back into the city, headed for the gates so they could get started on their journey. "I, uh… well, after my dad died I couldn’t stay at the Cornerclub forever, so… I had to move there. Once you’re sixteen they throw you out with nothing to fend for yourself, so I only lived there a few years, but, yeah, I dunno. I know the way the building is set up, I know where Grelod skulks off to, the only time she’s really ever alone, I know there’s another caretaker that we’ll have to avoid if you do go through with this. I actually know Aventus, even," he admitted, focusing on keeping a quick pace so he wouldn’t have to deal with looking at Terezi while he recounted more of his past to her. 

"So, are we walking there or are we taking a carriage?" he asked once they were through the city gates, silently praying for the carriage; after walking the 7,000 steps and all the way to Kynesgrove to here with minimal stops for sleeping, he was more than ready to rest his feet and have someone else do the work for a while.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh god keelise fell asleep without posting the chapter so im posting it so you guys dont have to wait  
> ive never even used ao3 i really hope everything looks okay for you guys ;aaa; iM sorry i hope you enjoy anyway :')  
> 


	13. riften v

Once they agreed on a carriage, Karkat got to enjoy a nice slumber, and though he hadn’t managed to drift off as quickly as Terezi, he did wake back up before she did, restless about the notion having to go back to the orphanage, and getting messed up in the Dark Brotherhood’s affairs. The more he thought about it, the stranger it was that no assassins had shown up to answer the child yet if he had been properly calling for them with all the necessary requirements. Nearly all of Windhelm knew what he was up to, only stopped by their fear of the Brotherhood, and even Gamzee, a drifter who never stayed in one place for long, had heard talk of the orphan. It didn’t make sense that the Brotherhood hadn’t, and Karkat didn’t believe their hold on Skyrim or their power had lessened any, and he didn’t think the assassins typically cared whether their contract was from a political adversary asking for the death of a Jarl or from a child asking the death of a woman who had wronged him; a contract was a contract, and he couldn’t find himself so able to sleep again with all the confusion fogging up his head.

By the time they arrived at Riften, Terezi had not woken, and Karkat couldn’t find it in him to wake her up, well aware that not only did she not get as many chances to sleep as he did, but she also likely forced herself to stay up until he was asleep and had to wake up before he did to ensure he didn’t sneak away. She probably needed the rest, so he let his mind wander while he waited for her to wake. After a while, she did, but he only noticed when she started jerking around, and for a moment he didn’t understand why—and then it clicked that she couldn’t see him and must have assumed he’d left. “Hey,” he reached for her shoulder, trying to give her a reassuring touch and settle her from her panic but without frightening her from his sudden appearance. “You okay?” he asked, edging around actually saying he was aware she was panicked over his disappearance and leaving it up to her what she would say. “You looked tired so, I figured I’d let you sleep more. But if you’re all set, did you want to get going to Honorhall?”

“I’m fine,” she brushed him off, disgruntled at having been caught off-guard, but also at being perceived as weak. There would be a day when sleeping would no longer be a necessity and it couldn’t come quick enough for Terezi. She got back onto her feet, ignoring the temptation to curl up and go back to sleep instead of carrying out the task at hand. “Okay, Honorhall.”

Bristling at Terezi’s sudden coldness, Karkat sighed, following her away from the stables and back towards Riften. It was strange to be going back—he wasn’t sure what to expect. He had tried to tell the Guild he was being taken, but maybe the thief who’d seen hadn’t understood, or maybe he hadn’t even noticed. Maybe he didn’t care, or maybe he had told the Guild and the lot of them didn’t care. He supposed it wouldn’t have been terribly surprising. He was useful to the Guild, but not invaluable, and he didn’t expect anyone to notice if he was dragged back to Riften by the same girl who had dragged him out of it probably more than a week ago. If he was being 100% honest, he supposed he was a little nervous for Terezi, on the off-chance the Guild did care. She was strong in battle but her sight was a major handicap against the Guild who lived in the shadows, and he hoped they wouldn’t do anything to her, even if it meant he could finally go free.

Once they were inside the city, Karkat stepped ahead of Terezi, half to lead her along and half to make it look like he wasn’t a prisoner to her, and led her along the roads to Honorhall Orphanage. He hesitated at the doors, glancing back at Terezi and tipping his head towards the building. “This is the place,” he told her, regardless of how obvious it probably was, considering they had stopped in front of it. “Just… be quiet so you can see what she’s like. She doesn’t exactly put up an act for company but I don’t think she’ll beat them in front of you, either. You might want to snoop around and talk to the kids, I guess,” he shrugged, unsure how she was going to determine whether or not Grelod needed to die. “Anyway just… keep quiet at first,” he reminded her, before he slowly and quietly opened the door and slipped inside.

"Those who shirk their duties will get an extra beating. Do I make myself clear?" Karkat almost smirked as the first thing they heard upon walking in was already going to weigh pretty heavily against her. He didn’t know what Terezi intended to do about this whole matter, but he doubted she was okay with beating children. "And one more thing," Grelod continued, "I will hear no more talk of adoptions! None of you riff-raff is getting adopted. Ever! Nobody needs you, nobody wants you. That, my darlings, is why you’re here. Why you will always be here, until the day you come of age and get thrown into that wide, horrible world. Now, what do you all say?"

Grelord’s shrill voice was instantly identifiable, and Terezi listened with disgust at the first threat of beating the children. There was no instance where that was okay or acceptable, and the thought that children could be raised with a mother figure opposite to Terezi’s own should have been criminal by itself. There was no way that what she was listening to could be misinterpreted; Grelord the Kind was given an ironic nickname in some twisted acknowledgement of her superiority complex—whatever Karkat had joked about Terezi was a thousand times worse with the reality of Grelord.

Karkat could have recited the words right along with all the children. “We love you, Grelod. Thank you for your kindness.” Once she had finished shouting at the children, she barked out the name of her assistant, and there was some shuffling as the woman hurried to Grelod’s side to tend to whatever she was demanded. The thief tilted his head towards Terezi, giving a one-shouldered shrug and gesturing towards the headmistress. “There you have it. Grelod the Kind. What do you think?”

“Is she running an orphanage or a cult?” Terezi hissed quietly at the final chant, almost shivering at the manipulation. How could anyone be deluded enough to think that was normal? How had people listened to it and not done anything about it—including Karkat. Or maybe Grelord’s insults and manipulation was so strong and reinforced that even Karkat hadn’t been able to do anything about it afterwards, and maybe it even accounted for his personality and inability to take pride in himself. Side-tracked by more strange empathy for Karkat, Terezi focused herself onto the task at hand—aware that soon enough someone would notice them. “She’s already dead,” she murmured into Karkat’s ear, having to bend down slightly to compensate for the height difference. “Tell me how to do it away from everyone else.”

While her disgust with the way Grelod treated the children didn’t surprise him—no one liked the way the woman treated the children, to be honest—her decision did. All around Riften, people knew this woman was wicked, and while it was true that other holds likely didn’t know, the people here pitied the children, though never enough to do anything to help them. People would pity children taken from their homes and forced here but not even their Jarl, Laila the Law-Giver, bothered to step in and keep Grelod the Kind away from the youths. People weren’t ignorant, but no one wanted to risk their own positions to help—and here Terezi was, agreeing to murder the old crone to help the children. He’d taken her for all black-and-white about law and order, about good and evil; that the laws were good and the lawless were evil. But he was starting to learn she was more than that, and maybe, even if her view on some things was still skewed, she was about to risk her new-found reputation as Dragonborn over a bunch of orphan children.

"No one will miss her," Karkat affirmed, hoping that his comment would keep Terezi from doubting what she was about to do, though she didn’t seem like she intended to go back on it. And while he still wished they weren’t doing this—or at least weren’t doing it as a contract of the Dark Brotherhood, getting Grelod out of the picture could only ever be a good thing. "Okay, um." Running his tongue over dry lips, Karkat fumbled to work out a plan to keep them both undetected, but no matter how he looked at things, he couldn’t see a way for it to work out—it was afternoon, so the children would have already been allowed their one hour out in the yard, so he couldn’t count on them being out of the picture there. There were so many children that he couldn’t count on one not to notice if they just tried to be sneaky. Only one plan really came to mind, and it still wasn’t the best—it would still place Karkat at the scene of the crime, but at least Terezi wouldn’t be noticed. "Just wait for me to distract them; then get Grelod alone, I don’t care if you just walk in on her—her bedroom and office is right passed the kids’ beds, or ask to speak to her about, I don’t know, adoption? Actually, probably be better if you said you wanted to make an arrangement to send more food here or something considering she doesn’t even adopt the kids out—whatever. I don’t care, just get her alone and do it then, I’ll keep everyone else distracted." He still didn’t like the idea of revealing himself to them shortly before Grelod’s death, but he seriously doubted he would be reported, as it was. "You won’t be seen. Sound good? Because I don’t have any other ideas."

There was no need for further reassurance at whether Grelod would be missed or not: the view of other’s wasn’t Terezi’s interest any more. Grelod was guilty of being a disgusting human, and the children would be better off without her. Of course, there were probably other ways that weren’t death—but the woman was so old that Terezi was probably only giving her a prod in the right direction. It wasn’t as if she could be trusted alive in another city: those with cruel intentions didn’t change for anyone. She looked over the orphanage while Karkat rattled around his brain, noting the amount of children and the amount of room in the building. It was going to be difficult to do anything, and there was no method she had on her to make it a clean killing. She guessed the simplest method would be to slit her throat with the iron sword, but there was always so much blood that way. However, as long as she had control and precision over herself, then there was a chance she could keep the blood to a dribble. As appetizing as the thought was to Terezi, she didn’t think the rest of the orphanage would appreciate her painting the walls in rich blood.

“I’m not sure I’m exactly the type to look like a merchant,” she snorted, able to smooth out the finer details in Karkat’s plan with her own. It had been interesting to watch him come up with something by himself, but Terezi had been manipulating and reading people for so long that it wasn’t entirely necessary. The issue was being able to keep neutral enough not to come off as suspicious, which was always difficult when all someone had to do was just look towards her eyes and be put off. Or maybe it was the sword that did it. Or the lack of personal space. In truth there were a thousand reasons Terezi could attribute to her un-approachability but it would be waste of time—there was no changing what she had and was, which would be what she worked with. “You’ll be seen,” Terezi hummed with thought, but made no offer to an alternative. She couldn’t help her curiosity over how Karkat was planning on gaining everyone’s attention, seeing as he was hardly the actor. With eager anticipation, Terezi beckoned for Karkat to begin. “Let’s see how well you can distract them, princess.”

Karkat’s eyes narrowed at her taunt, but he decided it was probably better just to let it slide, rather than start an argument in the foyer of the orphanage when they were trying to be sneaky and covert. “Sure,” he grumbled, keeping his voice low, though the note of mostly agitation wasn’t repressed. “It’s just probably gonna cut into our food supplies,” he stated simply, sliding some food from his bag—turned her bag, since she’d joined him—and stepped away from her before she could inquire any further about his plans and how good or bad they might be.

He stepped easily towards the orphanage’s aid, smiling towards the children as they recognized him and hurried over, calling out an excited “Karkat!” as they did. Grelod noticed him as well, grumbling something sweet about how she would have just left him locked in the closet forever if she knew he was going to keep coming back here unwanted, but she didn’t do anything about his presence, simply skulking off to her bedroom and closing the door to block out the noise.

"It’s good to see you again, Karkat," Constance greeted him, smiling pleasantly at him, though her eyes wandered towards what he was holding. "I don’t suppose you’ve brought anything to help?" Her voice here was a bit more hesitant, eyes flickering towards the door of Grelod’s bedroom as if afraid the old crone would burst out again at the mention of help for the children. But her door remained quiet and Karkat nodded, pulling some linen wrap away from the meat while the children gasped at the food, used to brothy soup and bread. "You guys might want to heat it—" but the children were so excited about having some meat that they didn’t seem to care about that, excitingly grabbing what had already been sliced and filling their empty stomachs.

"Okay I guess," Karkat relented, "I mean it’s already been cooked so if you guys wanted cold deer who am I to judge." And Constance giggled, taking the meat from his hands and from the children’s, and heading towards the fireplace, effectively leading the group further from Grelod’s bedroom, and Karkat glanced back towards Terezi to symbolize to her that she should probably move now, while the group was transfixed with the promise of a nice meal. "And how did you manage to even get food like this?" Constance asked, nudging the dunmer playfully. "It was very legal!" Karkat replied back quickly, bringing his hand down to tap his bow. "It was caught, not stolen.”

Terezi wasn’t sure why she’d thought that watching Karkat’s plan would be amusing, especially now that she wasn’t sure why it unsettled her to watch. There was an uneasy twisting feeling in her stomach as Constance moved closed to him, trying to gauge what kind of relationship the two had shared. It wasn’t as if there was a threat that the woman would have time to come to realize the relationship that Terezi had with him, and even if she did—which would require cognitive functioning beyond a simple child maid—there was nothing she could do about it. No serious consequences would come, seeing as the time it would take to alert someone with more power would give Terezi enough time to leave.  Even knowing that there was nothing to worry over, Terezi still found herself tensing as the two shared familiarity, a friendly banter passing between them. Her mouth formed a hard line as the two seemed to all but flirt, annoyed at having to go kill an old woman while Karkat got to play the hero.

Standing around watching Karkat all day was going to be a waste of time, considering the reason they were actually there. While his plan of offering food has been smart, it hadn’t been smart enough to bring to Grelod too. Terezi would end up covered in blood if she tried to take out the woman while they were in the middle of conversation, let alone the noise that would be made. While she usually liked to draw out death and torture those she deemed worthy of such a fate, it was different with children so close. The quickest and easiest way would be to slit her throat, and hope that she could do it before the woman noticed her.

She didn’t think that her skills in stealth were on par with the rest of the Thieves Guild, but they had been enough to catch Karkat—which probably meant nothing in the grand scheme of things, but offered a little reassurance that she could move quickly enough. Hesitating at the bedroom door to check on Karkat and Constance, she gave the pair one last thought of vexation before slowly opening it. Her breath was held as it cracked open, inch by inch, until she could see the woman sat at her desk: perfect. Terezi managed to close the distance before the woman noticed, grabbing her throat as she went to shout out. It wasn’t hard to overpower someone who was essentially an elderly stick in comparison, but it wasn’t easy either—the hand she wanted to use for her blade had to be substituted for keeping the woman from moving around too much; she certainly wasn’t going down without a fight, which left Terezi unable to draw her sword.

She slowly realized that she could kill the woman like this—no blood, no mess. The thought left her hesitating long enough for the woman to struggle again, scaring Terezi back into a tighter grip. “Shhh,” she mockingly whispered, moving the hand from the woman’s shoulder to her throat instead. It was a surreal experience, but her advantage made strangling almost effortless with both hands. While avoiding the hands scratching at her face, it was almost exciting to feel the blood pulse under her fingertips, having complete control over someone who deserved death so thoroughly. Eventually the resistance under her subsided, falling slack under Terezi’s touch. She let go instantly, pushing the body forwards so that it slumped over the desk. There were a couple of minutes were she simply stood and watched over it, unsure what to do with the high and adrenaline that was buzzing through her—getting addicted to strangling people didn’t seem the best idea. Composing herself with a low breath, Terezi slipped back out of the room again and headed towards Karkat.

When Karkat noticed the door to Grelod’s open again and Terezi creep back out, he was confused for a moment—there was no blood on her at all, and he hadn’t heard any sounds to indicate a struggle, as he would have expected for her to do it without weapons—but he didn’t hear Grelod yelling at Terezi once she was out of the room, either. He couldn’t tell if he’d gotten her morals wrong and she’d backed down and left Grelod or what had happened. He supposed he’d find out when she told him, at least. He didn’t expect her to actually walk over to him, drawing some attention from Constance at her sudden appearance, and he saw the woman glance towards the door as if wondering when she’d missed the redguard enter. “Okay I guess I’m going,” Karkat joked when Terezi tugged his arm, and the kids sounded off a ‘bye Karkat!’ in near unison.

Near unison, as one of the children had slipped away, likely confused that Grelod had spent so long tolerating how loud everyone was being without even one threat of beating; Samuel, the self appointed leader of the kids, had to poke his nose into Grelod’s room and see what was going on. ”She’s dead!”

Karkat could feel Terezi’s muscles stiffen where she’d been tugging his arm, just as he stiffened and everyone in the room froze and looked towards Samuel as he emerged from her bedroom, a smile wide on his face. “She’s dead! She’s really dead!” One of the boys broke away to check for himself, too good to be true, while the other two, Francois and Runa just cheered and happily jumped up and down to celebrate.

"Constance," Karkat whispered as he reached to touch the Imperial, to calm her and keep her from calling for guards. "Constance listen, this is a good thing." She met his eyes, still looking frightened and confused, and her gaze drifted to Terezi as she slowly put two and two together as to why she hadn’t noticed her enter the room. "You can give these kids a better life now," he continued, squeezing her arm so she would focus on him and not memorizing Terezi’s face to report to the guards. "You can help them now, keep them from being shackled in a closet—you could help them find real homes!"

While Karkat worked on calming the orphanage aid, Runa Fair-shield broke away from the group of celebrating boys and to Terezi, as it was just as clear to the children as it was to Constance who had done this. “You saved us, miss!” Runa informed her, tugging on a bit of her armor. “I wanna be like you when I grow up,” she continued, glancing back towards the boys for a moment before she looked up at the Redguard with a smile. “I wanna be a hero, like you.”

The grounding point seemed to be Constance, and Karkat moved out of Terezi’s grip back to the woman. Her head moved towards the floor as Karkat touched her, annoyed by the private moment they seemed to be sharing while the children were all but screaming about the old woman dying. She could only be thankful that the orphanage wasn’t in the middle of the city. It was impossible for her to understand why their reactions were so strange, especially compared to the one she’d experienced as a child—but then again, her mother hadn’t abused her and she didn’t deserve to die; Grelod has abused everyone around her and there was no doubt that she deserved her punishment. She flickered back up to Karkat as he mentioned giving the children a better life, trying not to snort at the motion. She didn’t exactly think that Constance had made a great effort if the children were so emotionally distorted that they were celebrating Grelod’s death.

Her attention turned from Karkat and Constance to the girl below her, unable to regard her with anything but confusion as the girl sang her praises. She wondered if the children were as out-of-touch with reality as she had been as a child, unable to understand death and what it entailed. Or maybe they were so used to people dying that it wasn’t something to be feared or mourned. Perhaps Grelod just really deserved to die—although that was hard to sustain as absolute truth with the way Constance was acting. Realizing the importance of responding to the child instead of getting lost in her own thoughts, she focused on formulating an appropriate reply. “Well you can’t be a hero if you’re so little,” Terezi grinned, lowering herself so that the height difference was nulled. “You’re going to have to grow up big and strong, so make sure you beat up anyone who’s mean to you for practice,” she noted, vision following the girl’s own back to the group of boys. “Girls are stronger than boys anyway,” Terezi whispered, as if she’d let the girl in on a big secret. “You’ll be a great hero.”

“But heroes have to go do other heroic things, even if they’d like to spend all day lollygagging,” she raised her voice, all but calling out to Karkat to hurry up. The situation was still surreal to her, and defensive avoidance was her best option. Not to mention that she was still a little paranoid about Constance and the children: it wouldn’t be ideal for them to raise attention to Grelod’s death before Terezi could leave the city—especially now that she’d been identified.

Karkat only looked away from Constance when Terezi called him out on lollygagging, rolling his eyes though he knew she was right, and turned back to the woman once more. “You’ll be okay,” he told her again, giving her arm one last comforting squeeze before he stepped away from her, and she nodded shakily, eyes flitting towards Grelod’s room again, and then to the children. Even if the situation was a little much, and a little frightening to her, Karkat knew she would do what was best for the children, as she had always tried to do. He wouldn’t be able to drop by to share food he’d managed to get ahold of with them anymore, but he likely wouldn’t have to anymore, as Constance would give the children more than one meal a day. He trusted her to look after things here, and surely once she got the hang of it, she would trust herself with it too.

With that, Karkat started towards Terezi, half because he knew she was right and they did have to leave, and half so she would stop telling the children foolish things. “Don’t beat them up, Runa,” Karkat stated, sending a half-hearted glare the Redguard’s way for offering up such advice. “Tell Constance if anyone is mean to you; beating them up won’t solve anything.” Runa groaned back an agreeable response, but her eyes went back to Terezi and she smiled at her, and Karkat was sure she had ruined the sweet little girl and turned her into a young Terezi, whatever horrors that entailed.

But the issue now was getting out of the city without issue—even if she would keep quiet about who was responsible, Constance would have to report Grelod’s death eventually, and he wanted to be long gone by then. Taking Terezi’s arm, Karkat led her from the orphanage and back to the streets of Riften, pausing once they were a good distance from Honorhall to get some input. “Where are we going now?” he asked, but as soon as the question left his lips, he was sure he knew the answer. They had come here on a mission, come with a purpose, and the only appropriate thing to do at this point was to report back to the one who had given it to them. A heavy sigh fell from the dunmer, face falling as he realized. “Back to Windhelm, right?”

There was a millisecond where she hesitated at Karkat’s displeasure over going back to Windhelm—did they really have to go back? It was then that she realized what she was thinking, and that stopping what needed to be done out of concern for Karkat’s feeling was stupid; she had no vested interest in how he felt. There was also no bigger argument on why they shouldn’t go back to Windhelm, meaning that Terezi was quickly telling Karkat to shut up whining and locating a carriage to begin the journey back.

Things felt a little fragmented between them, with ‘between them’ only referring to Terezi’s inability to work through her own emotions. She found herself aggravated by Karkat’s company: the same irritation that had flared up at the orphanage. There was no reason to pretend that things were fine for his sake, especially when she reminded herself—once again—of why she was travelling with Karkat in the first place. He wasn’t a person because he was a criminal, and therefore being short with him was acceptable and if it hurt his feelings then too bad. Still, it didn’t make her feel any better and Terezi still found herself feeling off for the journey, dinner at the inn and then as they got ready to sleep.

She didn’t tie Karkat up again, simply taking the floor and sleeping as close to the door as possible while he was across the opposite side of the room. It made things feel more normal, and reassured her that there was some kind of divide between them—metaphorically and literally. She rolled around restlessly for a while, fidgeting out of frustration and boredom. After what felt like too long, Terezi gradually felt herself drifting to sleep, falling into an unnaturally deep sleep.

* * *

Karkat was surprised when no one woke him, angrily telling him that it was time to get his lazy self up, and he twisted over in his bed, blinking groggily as he tried to figure out the cause of Terezi’s benevolence. The question answered itself rather easily; Terezi wasn’t here. Eyes narrowing, Karkat carefully rose from the bed, glancing around the room as if he’d somehow missed her, confusion and sleepiness making him only more bewildered. As he moved closer to the door, closer to where Terezi had been sleeping, he spotted a piece of paper on the floor. Stooping to read it, Karkat felt his blood run cold as he recognized the insignia, a black handprint in the center of the message, the black hand that he knew to be the black hand of death, and below it, scrawled, were the words, ‘We know.’

Piecing two and two together was simple, and Karkat felt his chest rising and falling more rapidly as he did:  the Dark Brotherhood had come for her. They knew that she had stolen their contract, just like he’d told her they would, just like he’d told her not to get involved. They could easily have killed her; he wondered why he’d been spared. Did they know he was Thieves Guild and spare him out of allegiance? Perhaps they knew Terezi was the one who had killed her, and that meant she was the only one who needed to suffer for meddling. Whatever the case, it was very likely that Terezi was dead—but it was reassuring not to see any blood around, at least. Regardless of the strange looks he received for doing so, Karkat hurriedly searched all of Candlehearth Hall, ignoring the confused looks the Nords gave him, but he couldn’t find any trace of her body. Rarely caring who knew or putting much effort into hiding their work, Karkat deducted that Terezi was most likely alive—at least for now. Maybe they intended to teach her a lesson before she died.

And then it finally set in—Terezi was gone. Dead or alive, the Dark Brotherhood had taken her away from Karkat for the time being, and he was finally alone, after what must have been two week or more at this point of having to follow the girl wherever she wanted at the risk of death—and she’d nearly killed him already, he remembered, fingers moving to press against his neck lightly. But she was gone now, and even if she did get away from them, or they released her, for some reason… how would she be able to find him again? He finally had a chance to be free again, to go where he wanted again without worrying a snappy Dragonborn would slice off his head. And then, it wasn’t like he really even had another option. If the Dark Brotherhood had her, they weren’t going to be stupid enough to be outsmarted by her. They weren’t going to let her go, and he’d never be able to find where she was being kept, assuming she was still alive.

Surely it was best to just take it as a sort of gift from the Brotherhood and go, Karkat told himself, and he sighed as he left the inn and headed for the marketplace in search of a certain Altmer.

 


	14. abandoned shack i

Terezi wasn’t sure why waking up was so hard, but she didn’t enjoy it. The back of her head felt heavy, while the front was fuzzy and light. It was a disorientating effect, and her first instinct was to panic that Karkat had suddenly snapped in the night and done something. She started to wake up properly, sitting up in alarm to a room that she didn’t recognize, and one that was almost entirely dark at that. She strained her senses to try and gauge the situation, barely managing to scour a fraction of the room before a voice called out to her. For a terrible moment she thought that it might have been Kanaya, before realizing that it was far from it. The situation became clear as Grelod was mentioned, and Terezi could feel herself tensing with anticipation. She hadn’t realized quite how fast news could travel, and it was an annoyance that she’d underestimated the influence of the old woman.

Terezi’s uneasiness was amplified by a compliment to her kill, trying to keep five steps ahead to work out what was going on, but still barely able to think. She couldn’t even see the other woman, but she could feel the weight of Pyralspite against her back—the knowledge that she was allowed her weapons was even more worrying than if they’d been taken away in the first place. Suddenly the assassin revealed herself, dropping the Dark Brotherhood as if it was meant to mean more than it did to Terezi. She remained impassive, unsure how the organisation went about doing things—and just how they went about getting people to repay debts of death.

She turned as she was instructed to, vision unable to pick up on just who she was looking at. None of them seemed to have faces, and her imagination jumped to conclusions that made her feel sick. She outright refused to comply with the assassin, shivers running down her spine as she was told that it was her own fault that it was happening. Gritting her teeth and ignoring the need to vomit, Terezi pulled herself to her feet and began to slowly move towards the figures. Moving closer reassured her that their faces were obscured by bags, with a Nord beginning to speak as soon as she was close enough. She didn’t exactly think that he was a great person, but it wasn’t as if he was a criminal or doing anything worth hiring a contract for. The next woman didn’t seem bad either, although she did nothing to alleviate the throbbing resounding through Terezi’s skull.

The last voice made her falter, catching the end of ‘defiler of daughters’ as her facial expression twisted into disgust. His arrogance over threatening to carve his name into her corpse had Terezi’s fingers twitching, about to kill him before he got another word out. She restrained herself from it, unsure if she wanted to give the assassin what she had demanded—but what else was she to do? It had been made clear to her that no one was going to leave until someone was dead. It was with that thought that Terezi seemed to have a spark, attention slowly turning towards the assassin. Who said that any of the three had to die, as long as ‘someone’ died?

Terezi pulled out Pyralspite as the thought hit her, wanting to keep at arm’s length from the other woman. It was obvious that an assassin would use a small concealed weapon, which gave Terezi an advantage in avoiding it. The woman didn’t seem to catch on until Terezi had got closer, unable to get a clear hit as her body lurched from moving too fast. She managed to miss the woman’s first hit, confirming that she was indeed fighting against a dagger. Taking the second hit, Terezi focused harder as the pain felt even more intense than a normal dagger hit. She sliced at the assassin, revelling in the familiar feel of metal cutting into flesh. Instead of pulling back, she pushed the sword in further—grimacing at the noises the woman was making. They exchanged blows between each other, with Terezi being thrown more and more off-balance with herself every time. Luckily, there was no way a sword would lose to a dagger, and Terezi managed to scrape a defeat as the assassin left life with a final congratulations spoke to Terezi, chilling her to the bone.

Taking a few moments to recover, Terezi pushed the back of her hand against her forehead as she looked over the fresh corpse. She searched through the woman’s clothes with curiosity and repulsion as she looked for some kind of identifying paper, but found nothing. At least the woman had a key on her, which Terezi took with relief at the opportunity to leave. However, she still had duties to fulfil, even if she wanted to get out of the shack as soon as possible. She strode back to the last man she’d spoken to, not even stopping to think as she swung Pyralspite into his neck. The first time didn’t cut cleanly enough, and she horrified herself at having to swing again to actually decapitate him—let alone the piercing scream he let out. His head fell onto the floor with a dull thump, echoing around the room as Terezi tried to steady her breathing. The next task was to break the bonds on the other two captives, passing the key to the woman to allow her to leave.

Terezi balled her hand into a fist and placed it up against her mouth, biting against the surface in an attempt to make the situation less surreal. The corpses of the assassin and the rapist didn’t exactly help, and it was starting to make her feel sicker. Counting on the two civilians to have had enough time to run away, Terezi headed towards the bright source of light which she assumed to be the exit. Outside was even harsher on her senses after being deprived of light, leaving her to hiss and recoil at the door. Still, there was nothing left for her inside the shack--leaving was the only solution left. Keeping Pyralspite close to her, Terezi stepped outside and tried to take in the surroundings only to be left feeling more lost and confused.

* * *

Finding the stupid shack had not been easy—Karkat’ had only gotten very basic bits of intelligence that it was in Hjaalmarch, probably, but close to Solitude as well, and that it was in marshland often riddled with frostbite spiders and out of the way enough that the guards had yet to locate it. He’d debated over the quickest way to get there until he realized that the longer he tried to figure out the fastest, safest route, the longer he took starting to find the shack and took a carriage to Morthal, leaving the city immediately and moving around to avoid running into Rose and Kanaya again.

After a while of wandering around the swamps and nearly stumbling into some Nordic tombs, Karkat came upon a shack that did, indeed, look abandoned. The first thing he noticed was the building didn’t have a single window, and he had to circle the house in search of the door—but once he found it, his stomach dropped, crouching to see blood on the threshold. Nervously, he brought his fingers to it, discerning that the blood wasn’t fresh enough to be wet, but whether he should take that as a comfort or not was beyond him. Taking a shaky breath, Karkat pressed his ear to the door, trying to hear if anything was going on inside, but he couldn’t make out anything through the thick wood of the door. Another breath to steady himself, and Karkat’s hands shifted—one to the doorknob and one to his dagger, though he wasn’t sure what good he could do against an assassin from the Dark Brotherhood. Before he even had time to try the door, the lock started to click, and he realized, in horror, that someone was already opening it from the other side, quickly shifting away from the door to crouch behind a barrel. He could only hope perhaps they’d be in such a hurry that they wouldn’t notice him--and whoever they were, it did seem to be the case, as a woman and a man fled the shack and hurried away into the swamp.

A third person made their way to the door, hissing as they reached it, and Karkat tensed and ducked away in case it was some sort of savage assassin, but then, he wasn’t sure why assassins would travel in packs of threes, and this one sounded very shaky, once it was done hissing. Peering past the barrel again, Karkat quickly recognized the hissing monster, rising to his feet without thinking about any potential fourth person in the shack. “Terezi,” he called out to her, hoping that his voice would be enough warning for her, as she seemed disoriented by the light, hurrying to steady her while his red eyes scanned her for signs of injury. “Are you okay?” As soon as he’d asked, he spotted her wounds, blood dripping from a cut on her collarbone and more on her arms, feeling his own chest tighten at the sight of the first, so close to her neck. “Can you heal them or—” he paused, looking back at her face again, finally noting the psychological toll whatever had happened in there had taken on her and unconsciously tightened his grip on her. “Are you okay?” he asked again, more gently this time.

Of all things Terezi expected from being dumped into the middle of nowhere after executing two criminals, Karkat was not top of the list—Karkat didn’t even cross her mind to make it onto the list, totally forgetting about him to instead focus on the situation at hand. She wasn’t sure how real the moment was, almost blinded by the surreal nature of the situation rather than the fact Karkat was there. She barely had time to process it before he was touching her, concern apparent as he seemed to examine her. “I’m fine,” she mumbled as he noticed her wounds, not even sure herself whether they were deep or shallow—at least they’d stopped stinging as badly as they had been when the assassin had been alive.

Then Karkat asked again, his grip tightening on her as if to make her examine the question more closely. She considered how tired she was from barely sleeping around Karkat, how exhausting her morals weighed up against being Dragonborn, how Kanaya’s attack had permanently shaken her, how irritated Constance had left her, how she hated being in dark places for too long or how messy the decapitation had become. In the grand scheme of things, she considered herself to have a lot of reasons not to be okay—her travels had never been so intense over constant weeks, always just short bursts of action before lulling into quiet.

Pursing her lips together, Terezi ignored the pain from moving her arm to place her hands over the top of Karkat’s forearm for some kind of grounding force against the way she was starting to shake. “I’m fine,” she tried to reinforced again, but her voice cracked into a whisper as her fingers curled into Karkat’s sleeves. She let her head drop towards the ground at the weakness of it, trying to avoid any comment on the way her eyes were starting to sting or how her breathing was more than faltered.

It was very clear that Terezi wasn’t okay, but Karkat didn’t want to push her into a zone that made her feel vulnerable, so he bit his tongue and nodded. “Okay,” he murmured, glancing over her shoulder at the shack to ensure that no one else was going to come out of it, though based on the blood on Terezi’s armor—more blood than could have come from her own wounds—he didn’t think anyone else would be walking out of the shack. “Okay just, let’s—” he looked towards the house again, not wanting to bring it up in case it set her off more, and he walked them away from it, which meant through the water surrounding the shack; not an option he was particularly fond of, but he’d come through once and knew it would be safe enough.

Trusting Karkat seemed to be the best course of action considering Terezi’s current state. She didn’t have any reason not to trust him, especially at the appearance that he’d gone out of his way to find her. The how’s or why’s didn’t currently interest her, too absorbed in following Karkat and getting away from any more lingering assassins or rapists. Even if she wanted to get away, carelessly walking into water wasn’t a suitable alternative and she tried to protest as much to the Dunmer.

“It’s only knee-deep,” he told her as he led her across, taking care to keep his hands on her so she wouldn’t worry.

Once they’d made it across and were far enough from the shack, Karkat eased her into sitting before he joined her, immediately rummaging through his bag for the smaller satchel he stored his ingredients in to find a butterfly wing and blisterwort, making short work of grinding them and passing the concoction towards the Redguard. “Drink that, you’ll feel better,” he told her, having remembered that she hadn’t used her restoration magic in the past thanks to being exhausted and he wasn’t going to chance that now, though he doubted she’d let him fuss enough to make a salve for her injuries, so the potion would have to do alone. “So… are you—” asking again would probably only upset her, he reminded himself, biting his lip as he fumbled. “What happened back there?”

She didn’t even check his potion, already aware that he was more than proficient at alchemy.  It was quicker just to drink it and be on with it, especially if it was going to help. Bristling slightly at Karkat’s question, Terezi let her fingers play with the mortar she’d been left with. “I stole a contract so they wanted me to fulfil a different one,” she explained, skimming over most of the details. “But I didn’t. I killed their assassin instead of whoever the target was.” Her mind wandered to the other big detail she’d left out, unsure if Karkat already knew. “And some other guy,” she added, twisting the bowl further into her palm.

Karkat’s hands clenched into tight fists upon learning that she’d killed an assassin of the Dark Brotherhood—he could only imagine that meant that they’d be out for her even worse than they already had been when they’d dragged her off here. It certainly wasn’t good news, but at least she was alive, even though it didn’t sound like they’d intended to kill her at all. Fulfilling another contract seemed like a strange sort of revenge for them to take, however, and he did wonder why they wanted her to kill someone for them when that had been part of the problem they’d had with her before, even if they didn’t get the payment from this one—not that they’d even had time to get the payment from Aventus themselves. It was possible that they’d wanted to torment her, as it was well-known that the Dark Brotherhood were a twisted lot that not even the Thieves Guild particularly liked involving themselves with. If that was the intent, it seemed it had worked—the Dunmer had never seen her so shaken before, aside maybe from Ustengrav, and he wasn’t sure he would be able to sort her out, just as he hadn’t been able to then.

Busy trying to figure out the Dark Brotherhood’s motive, Karkat barely heard the last bit, but once he took notice he glanced towards her, frowning as she fiddled with the mortar once she’d said it. He reached to take it back, digging into his bag again so he could make a salve on the off-chance she would let him apply it, and if not, he could always save it for another time. Slowly grinding more ingredients together, Karkat tried to decide whether asking about ‘some other guy’ was a good idea, but eventually his curiosity got the better of him. “Why did you kill the other guy? Who was he?”

“‘Vasha; obtainer of goods, taker of lives, and defiler of daughters,’” she simply stated, too tired to spit the words with venom. "He was going to have his name carved into my corpse," she continued, starting to idly trace the cuts across her arms. The amount of hits she’d taken from the assassin had been frustrating, but there wasn’t much else she could do about that. Most of her just wanted to sleep, but that itself was impossible when she didn’t want to consciously sleep in the near future. Who even knew where she’d end up next time she woke up? In an effort to ignore the thought, Terezi kept speaking. "I don’t know how he’s going to manage it without a head."

The answer to Terezi’s sort of question was obvious to Karkat:  a criminal like Vasha likely had other criminal allies, and even if a headless Vasha couldn’t carve his name into her corpse, his friends would notice his disappearance and do it for him. And he thought of saying as much, but the way she was absently tracing her cuts, and how pale she’d managed to go kept his mouth closed, and he moved closer to her. “He isn’t,” he stated firmly, dipping his fingers into the salve and spreading it carefully across her wounds, eyes moving to her face in case she recoiled or it stung. Sighing, he wrapped the cuts with some linen wrappings from the bag, before he leaned back to examine her again. “Well,” he sighed, unsure what he could say from here that would make her feel any better about what had occurred. “I’m… I’m glad you’re okay, then.” He shrugged, letting his eyes fall slightly as the uncertainty settled in his stomach. “Comparatively speaking.”

It was when he started bandaging her wounds that Terezi became uncomfortable again, aware of just how much Karkat was doing for her. There wasn’t a real need for him to clean her wounds: she certainly hadn’t done the same for him, even going as far as to cause them in the first place. She wasn’t even sure why he was glad she was okay—what did he lose out on if she wasn’t? Plus, he could have used the time to return home or find some place new. He could have lived with Kanaya and she wouldn’t have gone ten feet near him again. She glanced back up at him, not at all used to being unable to work people out. It was a rare defeat when she had to ask people information out of lack of knowledge, instead of appearances and politeness. ”Why?”

"Why?" he repeated, glancing towards her face for a moment before his eyes fell back to her wounds. He wasn’t sure the answer to that, let alone what to tell her; even now, he wasn’t sure why he had given up an opportunity to be free from her in order to make what he had assumed would be a futile attempt at rescuing her from the Dark Brotherhood’s clutches--essentially a suicide mission. He knew the simple answer:  she was the Dragonborn and the hero of Skyrim, and leaving her to die would have been irresponsible of him. The same answer he’d given any time either of them had questioned his defense of her. And in the beginning of this whole mess, maybe that was true, but at this point, it was hard to pin it on something so simple. Not to mention, when he thought she had died and realized she’d been kidnapped he’d been a bit more frantic than one should have been over someone who had essentially kidnapped them as well. Regardless of how much Karkat might have wanted to, it was hard to ignore the fact that he regarded Terezi as more than just the girl who had captured him, more than just the Dragonborn.

But that wasn’t the sort of thing he could tell her, the girl who saw him as a lesser because he’d ended up turning to theft. Granted, there were moments where she was civil with him, but they always passed, and when it came to it, the only sincerely kind thing he could remember her ever saying to him was a compliment on his archery. Even if he saw her as a friend, or whatever he saw her as, she would never see him as the same, and made sure to reinforce that with a bitter mood shift every time they got too close. Sighing, Karkat tucked the edge of the linen under the rest, checking to make sure it was tight enough that it would stay fastened and simply shrugged, keeping himself from meeting her eyes. “I don’t know,” he muttered, tearing another piece of linen for the last of her wounds. He doubted she would take that as an acceptable answer, but it wasn’t like he had anything better to offer her.

She didn’t say anything to in return, trying to examine what exactly that meant. The most probable meaning behind not knowing was that it was easier than saying the real reason, which was what interested Terezi most. She honestly didn’t understand why he hadn’t taken the opportunity to go free—she didn’t offer him anything and the night before hadn’t been pleasant. The brief moments where they were friends surely couldn’t account for anything. Maybe it went back to his obligations, because she was the almighty Dragonborn who was supposed to take pity on humans and instead kill every dragon she came across. Or there was the worst case that she’d inflicted some kind of psychological trauma on him where he was dependant on her like some kind of dog or child.

That train of thought unsettled her too much to continue down it, tensing away from her own assumptions. She wasn’t giving Karkat enough credit: he was a strong kid who had mouthed her with such insubordination that she’d lost her temper—which was almost unheard of. He certainly couldn’t be broken, and the thought that Terezi had broken him was a discredit to his personality. Still, she didn’t know the reason why—without Karkat ruling it out altogether, she still couldn’t be sure.

Maybe that was the reason for her next action, or maybe it wasn’t at all. Karkat went to touch her wounds again and Terezi met him, letting her hand rest on top of his. His hand was warmer in comparison to hers, and she couldn’t pick out any distinctive deformations. He felt significantly more feminine under her too; Terezi was more than aware that her hands were rough and calloused—there was no alternative for being a blind sword user. Karkat moved his hand away while she was still idle in her thoughts, snapped out of it by his action. She almost didn’t know how to react to her impulsiveness, deciding to change the subject before Karkat could ask. ”We still have to go back to Windhelm.”

Karkat froze when Terezi’s hand met his, unsure what to do and more importantly why she was doing it, especially when he’d expected to be yelled at for not giving her a proper answer. He didn’t pull away at first, trying to work out what exactly was going that that Terezi was offering physical comfort to him when she was the one who had just endured whatever traumatic bullshit the Dark Brotherhood had put her through, but he supposed it was possible touching his hand was making her feel better. Regardless of the reason, it was strange, after a moment, so he tucked the bandage and pulled his hand away from hers, awkwardly clenching them into fists as he was suddenly unsure what to do with them. The reminder that at the end of the day, they had to go back to Windhelm was an unwelcome one, and his eyes fell to the ground as he thought about returning again to the icy city he hated, but he knew still, there was little else they could do.

"I know," he sighed, gathering a scrap of the linen wrap that he hadn’t needed and running it over the mortar before he inched a bit closer to the water’s edge for some help with cleaning it, scraping to get the remainder of his ingredients clean so they wouldn’t contaminate a future potion. "But you must be tired," he suggested, glancing up at her for a moment before his eyes fell back to the mortar. "Did you want to rest a night? Closest town…" he paused, biting his lip as he hesitated on being honest, deciding against it after a moment. "Uh, we could stay the night at Solitude? Wouldn’t be a long walk and we could get a carriage back in the morning—we’d have to double back but aside from that, Whiterun’s the only city with a carriage after Solitude and if we walk that far we might as well just walk all the way to Windhelm because it’s only a little further and I don’t really want to walk that far on any account." Letting out an exhausted sigh, he dumped the remaining water back into the swamp and then slid the bowl and what was left of the linen wrap back into their bag. "So, Solitude then? Just for the night?"

“A little tired, but I’m fine with staying awake,” Terezi admitted to Karkat’s question, grossly understating the reality for the sake of her pride. There wasn’t a need to be dramatic or honest—she was sure that he knew what she wasn’t verbally communicating anyway. As Karkat began to think of what town was closest, Terezi silently scolded herself for not asking sooner. Or maybe it was best that she hadn’t, because the mention of Solitude had her freezing up again. There was no way that they could go there, not when Terezi had yet to return in the first place. She barely even thought about Solitude anymore, mostly out of an inability to think of it as a whole. Even if she one day decided to return, she couldn’t do so with another person. It was a personal issue that she needed to overcome in her own time—the only person who could ever understand would be Dave; Karkat didn’t need to know her past, she’d already looked weak enough in front of him recently.

“No.” Terezi cut across him as he offered the idea of staying for the night. She didn’t think she could walk close enough to it to take a carriage, let alone sleep within the cities walls. Even if she did somehow manage to keep it together, everyone in the town knew her—they would inevitably bring up her mother and then she’d have to deal with Karkat asking questions or being told her most private details by the very people who had written history in that way, with no knowledge of it. “We can walk to Windhelm. I’ve gone from here to Whiterun before: it’s about the same distance and would be much easier with two of us.” Sighing slightly, Terezi shifted with discomfort of where the conversation could have ended up. “But travelling now wouldn’t be a wise move anyway.”

Karkat lifted a brow at Terezi’s refusal, confused again, especially by the way she’d cut him off so forcefully when he’d suggested something primarily for her benefit. “I was kidding when I said we might as well walk back to Windhelm—it’s a long fucking trek through the snow and ice and… it’s basically on the other side of Skyrim! I mean I’ve walked long distances too but that doesn’t mean I’d like to do it again, when we don’t have to; Solitude’s just that way, it’s…” he sighed, coming to the conclusion that convincing Terezi against this would be no easy challenge and he didn’t have the effort to try anymore—something he was sure he would come to regret later, when his feet were blistering from the never-ending walk to a city he didn’t even want to return to.

Still, he wondered what kept her from agreeing—could have been her wallet had gotten significantly lighter from all the carriages they’d been taking lately and she didn’t want to keep wasting precious coin, but he felt like she wouldn’t bother to hide that from him, rather she would simply call him out on being a freeloader and demand they walk because he was running her dry. There was always the possibility that it was Solitude itself keeping her at bay—perhaps she had enemies there, or she didn’t like the city for whatever reason. But at the end of the day, her reasons didn’t matter, and Karkat resigned to face the cold hard facts that they would be walking to Windhelm.

"Fine," he grumbled, hoping that his displeasure was very clear. "Should’ve just left you." Shaking his head, he shifted into a more comfortable position, considering she didn’t want to travel yet and he might as well make the best of it. "Okay, so, we’ll rest here for a little while, I guess. Just let me know if you hear anything—place is filled with frostbites and I don’t want them creeping up on us." Karkat pulled his bow from his back, setting it across his lap and lightly resting his elbows on the dull wood. "What do you want to do until then?" he asked, letting himself soften a little now that going back to Solitude was off the table and being grumpy wasn’t going to accomplish anything. "I could go find some firewood, if you’re hungry. We’ve got enough meat for another meal, at least."

“As if any spider has enough intelligence to creep up on its prey,” Terezi snorted, not entirely talking about the insects. “But fine; it would be nice to stay alive—and a fire would be nice,” she relented in agreement, suddenly aware of how cold it was now that he’d brought her attention to it. He also brought her attention to how hungry she was, especially with how much the experience had taken out of her. “Don’t bother cooking mine, I’ll eat it as is,” she waved a hand, knowing it would taste the same whether it was hot or cold, and the texture wasn’t terrible when it was cold: at least it wouldn’t burn, which was the worst way for any food to get.

Karkat stared at her for a long moment when she asked for her meat raw, completely aware that she couldn’t get poisoned from it but still horrified that she would rather eat it raw, and he hoped that if he waited long enough she would change her mind and ask for it cooked, but he quickly realized it was more likely she would just make rude comments about how he was taking long enough that he might as well have just cooked it anyway, and sadly pulled some raw meat from the bag, cut her a piece off and passed it over to her. Looking at what was left of the meat for a moment, Karkat sighed before wrapping it again and sliding it back into the bag. “I’m gonna get firewood, for warmth, at least. I’ll be back.” Hesitating a moment to be sure she’d be all right, Karkat set his bow on his back and headed into the swamp.

It took a little longer than normal in a swamp instead of a forest, but eventually the Dunmer returned with enough wood for a fire, quickly setting one up and spreading a mixture of bleeding crowns and juniper berries over the wood to make it light easier. Only using the fire for warmth, Karkat took a piece of bread from the bag, not too hungry himself. “So,” he sighed, tearing a small piece and fiddling with it for a moment before he popped it into his mouth. “What are we doing while we hang around and gather our strength before our next exhausting journey to Windhelm, just watching the fire burn?”

“I resent your exclusive assumption that I can watch the fire burn,” Terezi tiredly retorted, lacking any effort to give a wittier response. Karkat did raise a good point: there was nothing to do until they were able to leave. Still, she wasn’t exactly in the mood to entertain Karkat, and even then she had no idea how she would. “Tell me more about you then.”

Karkat frowned at her request, slowly pulling the bread away from its crust while he delayed responding to her for a moment. He wasn’t sure what more there was to say about him—he’d told her a great deal about himself already, more than most people who weren’t from his past knew, and more than he would willingly share with most. In comparison, she’d told him very little—in fact, he wasn’t sure he’d even know her true name if she hadn’t been shellshocked at learning she was the Dragonborn. And now she was asking more of him—it hardly seemed like a fair deal, even if she had just been through an ordeal with the Brotherhood.

Taking a nibble from his meager piece of bread, Karkat set the bow on the ground again, deciding that if they weren’t traveling anytime soon, he might as well make himself a bit more comfortable. “I don’t know what there’s left to tell you, but I guess if you ask specific things I can answer them. But—” he paused, tearing another piece of his bread while he tried not to watch her eat the raw meat, “It’d be nice of you to offer something about yourself in return, you know. You basically know my whole story and I don’t know a thing about you. Sound fair?”

Terezi mulled over Karkat’s request as her canines tore more of the meat away, chewing carefully over the pros and cons of his proposed deal. As much as learning about Karkat was interesting, there wasn’t much of herself that she wanted to offer up in return—especially anything that was on par with what he had spoken about. Maybe Karkat could act nonchalant about his parent’s death, but Terezi couldn’t—at least not her mothers. ”My father was a member of the Legion as an Imperial Captain. He died before I could even remember him—didn’t know him,” she shrugged, not having to fake nonchalance. “I was born in Skyrim but my family wanted to return to Cyrodiil. I liked reading books, killing things and exploring when I was a child. I’ve mostly been eating wolves and goats since I started travelling and my favourite ending in Kolb and The Dragon is when Kolb dies.”

Finishing speaking to also finish off the last of the meat, Terezi recognized that she had probably given Karkat nothing of use—or at least in her eyes. “There’s information for you. Anything else I’ll only answer if I want to.” Setting down the formations of a new deal that didn’t quite match up with Karkat’s original one, she looked the Dunmer over before picking a question. “So, what exactly did you do before your dad was killed? You must have had some kind of childhood that wasn’t just moping about your ‘apparent’ lack of worth and skills.”

The information she offered wasn’t quite as personal as what Karkat had told her, but anything else he could learn about her was welcome, at this point. It interested him that her father was a Legionnaire, because it was another similarity in their backstories, that both of their fathers had ended up on the same team. That said, if her father had died before she got the chance to know him, they couldn’t have known each other, wouldn’t have fought together. “I still can’t believe you liked killing things as a kid; I don’t even like killing things now.” He did find it interesting that she was mostly eating wolves and goats, animals that both essentially ran into your weapons—which meant that she wasn’t likely a very good hunter. It made sense, considering. It was easiest to kill prey with archery and with her eyes, however they worked, that didn’t seem like much of an option.

"To be honest," he sighed, stretching slightly to crack his back where it had grown uncomfortable, "I didn’t do much outside of moping about my lack of worth and skills. I think everything I did, maybe aside from reading, and I guess, helping my mom around the house, was in an effort to make up for things I couldn’t. I think I mentioned before, I started doing alchemy to make up for the fact that I couldn’t do magic. I… I don’t know, I didn’t have the luxuries that other kids might’ve had? Didn’t have many toys, or much room to play around. My best friend liked to like, show off what magic he could do and then I’d try to show off with alchemy—wasn’t really the same." He paused, pulling what was left of his bread in half but not eating it—mostly he was just fiddling with it. "Unfortunately once again the story turns into another sob story of me fucking up—probably not the sort of thing you want to hear."

It was easy enough to imagine him helping his mother around the house, almost sort of sweet too. It just suited his personality, although it was a little depressing to hear after knowing how exactly she had died. “Let’s face it, you don’t have anything but sob stories,” she sighed, not really annoyed by it. She did have a general curiosity for such stories, out of some deep sadism complex and a need to manipulate people. People’s struggles interested her, with Karkat’s ranking especially so. “So I suppose it’s going to have to do; if it gets too boring to listen to then I’ll just fall asleep.”

"That’s sweet of you to say," Karkat remarked sharply, though only in the usual banter sort of way they tended to speak to each other. If she fell asleep, he supposed that would be good, after what she’d just dealt with. That said, he wasn’t intentionally trying to knock her out, regardless of how boring she might find the story. "Okay, well, fine, but it’s not a long impressive story anyway, so, you might only have time to get drowsy."

Taking a final bite of bread before sliding the remaining bits back into their bag, Karkat tried to figure out where to start on the story, taking a deep breath and exhaling slowly as he worked it out. “Uh, well, there weren’t many kids my age in the Gray Quarter—just one, so we were kind of friends by default. Not that I didn’t like him but, I don’t know, he was… really good at everything he tried to do, which, obviously you know doesn’t go the same for me. We had to be quiet about it because of the Nords close by, but he started learning magic really young and really easily—everyone would always say he was a prodigy. My dad couldn’t do magic either, but my mom could, and I hoped I’d be like her, I just… hadn’t grown into it yet? So for a while I was satisfied just watching him do spells until I could. But, you know, eventually it became clear I never would, and I got jealous. Alchemy didn’t compare; I could make things weak to fire,” he paused, nodding towards the fire they were huddled around now, “But I couldn’t hold up my hands and make flames like he could. Plus, he could do like, every fucking school of magic there was. He just had to read over a tome and he had mastered it. He liked dual-casting—I think he was sticking to fire and ice by the end of it. We treated each other like best friends and like rivals but it was all generosity on his account--I couldn’t compare.”

Shifting his legs into a different sitting position, Karkat leaned forward to prod at the fire, moving the logs so they burned better and ignoring the slight warmth he felt on his skin from the flames, thankful that his blood still let him resist fire, even if he couldn’t create it. Leaning back again, he shrugged, red eyes avoiding Terezi and staying focused on the fire. “When we got older, he was so good that the College of Winterhold literally came to recruit him. I didn’t even know they did that, but for Sollux, they made an exception, I guess. And he agreed to it, I mean who wouldn’t? Winterhold might be shitty but the College is nice, from what I’ve read. And anything’s better than staying at the Gray Quarter. But I was still jealous, and I was mad at him for leaving. I didn’t even see him off. And I haven’t heard from him since, either. I mean, he could literally be dead, for all I know. And he probably still thinks I hate him—or thought I did, assuming he didn’t make it. I don’t know,” he shrugged, sighing and crossing his arms over him as he felt himself become more withdrawn thanks to his story. “It’s just another thing to add on the the list of mistakes I’ve made in my life, I guess. Nothing I can do about it, anyway.” Briefly, he glanced back towards Terezi before letting his eyes fall back to the fire, just to check that she hadn’t fallen asleep, although at this point he wished she did. “So…” he shrugged again, unsure what to say now that he’d shared another round of the pathetic diaries. “That’s that, I guess. Sorry it didn’t manage to put you to sleep after all.”

Terezi couldn’t exactly relate to Karkat’s past, but the way he spoke of his friend reminded her of Vriska. The two had forever rivalled one another, with Terezi being unable to do things that Vriska could. The elder girl had easily held a sword, long before Terezi would ever find herself in the possession of one. She was a manipulator too, but only with magic—the kind of influence that would lead Terezi into the same path herself, only without illusions or spells. As much as she knew she was supposed to feel sympathetic towards Karkat, the man he was talking about interested her so much more. The idea of someone who could instantly learn spells from any school was something she’d usually pass off as an exaggeration, but her own experiences at the college had shown that such mages did exist.

Her idle thoughts over Karkat’s childhood friend started to match up as he spoke a name, Terezi freezing with curiosity. Could the Sollux she’d met really be the same Dunmer from Windhelm? It wasn’t exactly a common name, and Sollux’s status had been amazing with the college—he’d even told her that he’d been recruited as a child. The facts seemed to add up in her head, but that didn’t mean it was reality. Things seemed to take a more depressing turn as Karkat expressed his grievances, and it was then that Terezi decided to speak up.

"Sollux?" She questioned, almost hesitant to suggest that they could know the same person—fate couldn’t work in such a way, but yet there seemed to be the faintest trace of hope. "You mean the Sollux Captor?” Maybe putting an emphasis on the ‘the’ was a little harsh, especially when Karkat had just divulged how jealous he felt of the guy, but it was true in itself. Sollux seemed to be an unrivalled genius, and meeting him had been an amazing experience. “That kid is faaaaar from dead,” she laughed, perking up a little now that the thought of Sollux being six feet under was there.

For a moment Karkat couldn’t believe what she was saying—she couldn’t possibly know Sollux, it was just too far-fetched that she could know his childhood best friend, of all the people from his life. But she had his last name right, and the way she said ‘the Sollux Captor’ sounded like the arrogance that came along with the mage prodigy, as well. Not to mention that, in all technicality, it wasn’t the first time people from their lives had crossed paths, with her Rose and his Kanaya being an item, Terezi herself knew of his father, he’d been a fan of Tavros’, and hadn’t they both mentioned that they knew John of Whiterun as well? It was strange that she knew Sollux but at the end of the day, with all their apparent ties, it was hard to say it was the most surprising thing he could ever have heard.

”Yeah,” he replied, if a bit hesitantly, fingers clenching on the fabric of his pants, where he’d been resting them. “Sollux Captor’s his name. I don’t—how…” the Dunmer cleared his throat, trying to order his thoughts enough that his surprise didn’t leave him too confused to speak. “He went to the College of Winterhold though, how would you know him? I mean, I guess… he could have traveled,” he murmured, a tad bitter at the idea of Sollux leaving the College to travel and not stopping in at Windhelm to check in with his family and friends but, he supposed the way he’d left it, it wasn’t entirely unbelievable. “How do you know him?” he gave in and asked, regardless of how pathetic speaking of Sollux would eventually probably make him sound.

"Because I get what I want when I put my mind to it," she smirked, proud of her accomplishment of entering the College of Winterhold. "There’s an amazing library inside and I wanted to visit it, but obviously I couldn’t get in on magic ability so I sweet talked the woman at the gate into letting me in. So long story short I find the sweet loot of the library and start looking around when Sollux shows up; he’s an asshole asking why a blind girl is trying to look at books and I’m an asshole asking how why a mage doesn’t consider permanent illusion magic with a face like his. So we became quick friends!" She grinned, happy to talk about someone who made her happy. "Anyway, I stayed at the college for a while and hung out with him—y’know, swapping stories and skills. Not that either of us learnt much, I hate magic and he’s even skinnier than you are," Terezi smiled, not aiming the observation in malice.

"But like I said, he’s very much alive," she made sure to add, aware of the hesitant tone that Karkat had. "Just to update you on him—not to push on your delicate complex—but he was pretty high up on the college, I’d imagine he was even further now. Didn’t really have a lot of friends though, or I guess any at all," Terezi mentioned as an after-thought, mostly to give Karkat the leading impression that he was still important to the other Dunmer. "I guess it’s pretty much fate that the two biggest assholes in Skyrim are best friends."

It certainly did sound like Sollux, based on Terezi’s story, and he even found himself smiling when she described how insults had led to their friendship, and he found himself hanging on her every word, relying on her apparent blindness and not bothering to mask how interested he was in what she was saying. It was good to know he was alive, but it had probably always been a bit foolish to assume otherwise, with Sollux’s natural skill and intellect. “I guess he wasn’t the easiest guy to get along with,” Karkat mused as Terezi mentioned he had few friends, though he had no idea how other mages would treat someone like him, anyway. “Have to pick a fight with him to get on his good side.”

But Terezi’s final statement had him falling silent again, adjusting the fire again as something to distract himself with. “Were,” he muttered, smiling turning a bit bitter at the implication. “I was shitty with him for no reason the last few times we spoke—I don’t think he’d consider me his best friend anymore. With everything going on with him and the College—you said he was advancing far and fast, right? He probably hasn’t thought about me in ages.” He fiddled with the fire a bit longer, but fire resistance only got him so far before it started to actually burn, pulling his hands away quickly from the sudden pain. Rubbing his hands together he sighed, shrugging off the sour mood he’d fallen into. “This is stupid; let’s just forget about it, let’s talk about something else.”

Terezi watched with silence as Karkat played around with the fire, unable to know how to make him feel better. Obviously she’d never spoken to Sollux about Karkat, so there was no way that she could reassure him about the state of their friendship. She didn’t really think that Sollux was the kind of guy who would drop people easily, and to be honest he was pretty moody himself—surely he would be able to understand Karkat’s position. However, their relationship wasn’t Terezi’s to press into, so she let silence continue.

Talking about something else was suddenly a challenge, trying to work out what to ask without upsetting Karkat. It wasn’t as if the guy had a great history, and asking about what made him happy wasn’t really viable either. Deciding to risk a shot in the dark, Terezi decided to ask about a certain Jarl’s son—after all, there was no way an idiot as big as John could seriously cause harm to someone else. "What about your other friends? I don’t know the Jade you mentioned so I can’t say I really care about her—but John?" She raised her eyebrows in his direction, still confused over how the two had met.

Karkat was almost glad she didn’t get into talking about Jade—another story with a less than happy ending, but at least John was all right, even if she seemed to be asking half out of disbelief that he really knew him in the first place. “Through the Jade that you don’t care about,” he replied, smirking slightly as he did and looking back at Terezi again. Even if the Jade subject was a bit dodgy, John was easy enough.

"Apparently to be friends with Jade you have to pass a test," Karkat half-joked, unsure if John was so picky about everyone the girl spoke to, or just potential suitor-types. "And John is the test administrator. And grader. The two of them are pretty close, I guess," he skimmed, unsure about revealing the more personal aspects of their relationship to Terezi, "So he’s a bit protective about her? I didn’t exactly meet him by choice, he kind of just showed up and yelled at me. In his own way, you know, not like he was actually mad at me. But instead of quivering and trying to impress him, for whatever reason, he liked that I mouthed off to him and then he decided he liked me, I don’t know. Weird kid. Son of the Jarl, friends with a grimy thief from Riften. Doesn’t make much sense, right, but John’s not a very sensible guy, at the end of the day. He’s a fucking headache if I’ve ever known one," he shook his head; though, if he was honest, he was pretty sure most of his friends fell into the headache category. "And what about you? How do you know John?"

"Weird; I’ve never heard of her," Terezi frowned, trying to search back through her memory in case she’d forgotten about someone like that. She was aware of most John’s closest friends, seeing as Dave was too. But Karkat’s account of John seemed as accurate as she remembered, especially because John’s attraction to the obscure and rude had led to Dave and Terezi becoming friends with him. Still, his closeness to the Jade girl interested her, although not enough to press the issue any further.

"You already know that," Terezi reminded him, referencing the letter and the fact that he’d found out about Dave. "He came along and scooped up my boyf—best friend as his own!” She huffed, not as bitter about it as her words made her out to be. Dave deserved the opportunity and John was a solid friend to him—it was inevitable that Terezi would have left without him anyway. “More specifically, I threatened to slit his throat. He didn’t take too much of a shining to me but he got on very well with Dave, who in turn became his housecarl. I didn’t really hang out with John much but we get on okay, although I think he’s still wary that I really will kill him,” she giggled, happy to know that her presence was as threatening as ever.

Karkat didn’t miss her slip of the tongue regarding Dave, though he wasn’t sure why she even bothered to correct herself—he’d pieced together ages ago that she and Dave had had a relationship, considering she’d said she loved him before on the carriage ride, and the way she’d smiled when she received the letter from him, despite being unable to read it. “Right, Dave the housecarl. I’m surprised I never met him,” he murmured, trying to think back in case he had and just hadn’t paid him any mind, but he couldn’t remember any specific housecarls, and he was sure he would have remembered one as striking as a blonde Redguard—or even a Redguard housecarl at all, to be perfectly honest.

"But yeah, I don’t think—I think like, you can know John without knowing Jade easily because Jade’s not as—I guess it’s complicated. It’s easier for John to be involved in Jade’s life than vice versa," he attempted, aware it was a shoddy explanation that probably made the two of them sound very strange, but he didn’t want to overstep his boundaries. "Jade’s just a step up from streetrat anyway, so," he shrugged, "not like John. But I can’t believe you threatened to slit John’s throat, too! And here I thought I was special," he teased, idly running a finger over the healing wound on his neck and smirking at the Redguard.

There was relief in knowing that Karkat couldn’t remember meeting Dave, or even seeing Dave. It was reassuring to know that if something did happen between the two of them, then Karkat wouldn’t really have an advantage over threatening Dave or a similar distance possibility. Then again, even though she liked Karkat and admired his skills, she knew that he couldn’t compare in a fight against Dave—even Terezi couldn’t beat Dave at fights without resorting to other methods.

"Oh, but I didn’t actually try to slit his throat," Terezi purred, catching the way Karkat’s hand moved back up to his neck. "So I guess you’re pretty unique in the fact that you’re the first person who I’ve tried to kill who hasn’t actually died—but then again, that was hardly my fault! If Mr. Clam Chowder hadn’t showed up then maybe you wouldn’t be so lucky," she trailed off, noting the truth behind it. It was strange to think that she’d been so intent on killing him at that point, when now the thought of him being killed by anyone was unsettling to her. "But he did, so I guess you are special," she relented, sulking into herself at the direction that her thoughts had taken. Thinking about her near-kill of Karkat reminded her of the criminal she’d just killed, and the way his decapitation hadn’t gone so well. While she didn’t usually care about beheading people, the feeling resonated with one from her youth—one that she didn’t care to remember at all. "Ask me something," she demanded Karkat, trying to keep her attention elsewhere.

"The fuck is Mr. Clam Chowder?" he asked, eyebrows furrowing in confusion for a moment before he pieced it together—and he only managed that because he knew he’d survived thanks to the frost troll. Even once he’d figured out that it was apparently a title she was applying to the troll, it was strange that she had, but it gave him more information on her sight, he supposed, that she could still see colors—which left it around where he had believed it to be for a while now:  essentially just very very blurry. "Do you use food as your basis for naming everything?" he joked, although he was curious how that habit had started, and how she would have described others in general if she only worked off of food.

Terezi laughed as Karkat lost track of the conversation, too confused over Mr. Clam Chowder to continue. She simply stared him out until he understood, still grinning as he pushed the conversation onwards. ”Not food specifically,” Terezi corrected him, trying not to smile too much at the fact that he hadn’t cottoned onto her yet. “Tastes; he tasted like clam chowder, so he’s Mr. Clam Chowder. Your vampire friend is cabbage soup, and Sollux is Mr. Jazbay Apple, by the way!” There was a moment when she thought about telling Karkat about what she labelled him as, but decided against it. It was more fun to have him try and guess.

Tastes? That was certainly an interesting way to explain it, considering she hadn’t actually tasted the troll, or Kanaya for that matter, though he couldn’t speak for what could have happened between her and Sollux. Her sight was getting more and more complicated by the second and Karkat wasn’t sure he’d ever completely figure it out. Perhaps it was something like she saw colors but associated them with tastes? A very unique example of blindness: that was for sure, no matter how good his grasp on understanding it was. He did wonder at his own flavor but he assumed if she wanted to tell him, she would have. She probably enjoyed holding the information hostage and he wasn’t going to take the bait.

There were lots of things he wanted to ask her though, so he wasn’t about to pass up on the offer, and one question was on the tip of his tongue—why she hadn’t killed him yet. Regardless of whether or not they were getting along, he was still a criminal and with reading being his only special talent, he wasn’t exactly essential, especially since they hadn’t received another letter in a while. But if he was the subject she wanted to avoid, he could keep quiet. Not to mention, reminding her that she’d intended to kill him hardly seemed like the brightest idea ever.

Karkat took a moment to think over what he knew and didn’t know about her, and while there were several things he was curious to learn, he didn’t know how many questions she’d allow him to ask—not to mention, it was always possible he could hit a nerve and she’d stop answering them altogether. The answer he wanted most was very likely one of those sorts of questions, and while he didn’t want to risk going back to not talking—or talking like unfamiliar captor and prisoner again, it genuinely had to be the thing he was most curious to learn. “Okay,” he started slowly, making sure to look at her face and closely watch for her reactions. “Who is Vriska, and why were you using her name?”

While she’d expected Karkat to ask a question she wouldn’t want to answer, the thought of Vriska hadn’t really crossed her mind. Her first instinct was to refuse, but then she thought over the question a little more—it wasn’t as if she had to tell him too much; there was information about Vriska that she shared with most people, just as a warning to stay away from her and contact Terezi if they saw the pirate.

"Vriska was my best friend, when I was younger—before I was blind," she explained slowly, taking great care over the wording she used and how much information she disclosed. "Like I said, I barely had any adult supervision when I was growing up—I didn’t realize that she was dangerous—not until she paralyzed Tavros, killed our other friend Aradia and then—" she cut herself off from saying that Vriska blinded her, knowing that the whole event wasn’t just Vriska’s responsibility. "We had a confrontation and one of the outcomes was this," she shrugged, bringing up a hand to gesture at her eyes. "Long story short, she’s a pirate now. If I know I’m doing something dangerous then I use her name: she’s at sea, what’s it going to matter?" Terezi easily lied, not ready to give Karkat the full reasoning yet.

Karkat absorbed the information about Vriska as if he were reading a book, knowing he wouldn’t want to forget any of these details on account of Terezi probably wouldn’t be willing to repeat them. It was chilling to learn how far the hobby of ‘killing things’ as children had gone, that this Vriska girl was the reason Tavros couldn’t walk, that they’d had another friend who’d been killed—it made his childhood feel very tame in comparison, and it made him wonder if it was because of Vriska’s personality that Terezi had become how she was, with the easy threatens of disembowelment and casual way she could kill, while Karkat still aimed to incapacitate people who got in his way instead. And Vriska had something to do with Terezi’s blindness as well; Karkat got the feeling that however nonchalantly she was speaking of her, that there was a lot between the two of them.

Cautiously, Karkat continued, wanting to learn more about the pirate from Terezi’s past. “Isn’t it a bit dangerous to use a criminal’s name, though?” he asked, feeling like it was a reasonable enough question that didn’t seem to have much of an agenda. “Even if you’re doing something dangerous yourself, couldn’t you risk telling someone who knows Vriska is wanted that you’re her and then get yourself arrested for something you didn’t do?”

"I’m not an idiot, I carry around identification—I have a couple of letters from John that have my real name on them and if things ever got dire, then I always have Dave. My parents were both highly ranked in the Legion too, most guards respect that. As well as lacking adult supervision, I’ve pretty much lacked official punishment too," she joked, although it seemed a little out of place when she considered that she was openly admitting to manipulating her position of power. "Not that I actively break the law or do anything morally deserving of being imprisoned, I just like to know that a security net is there."

“You’re looking for her, aren’t you?” he asked, remembering that she’d asked Tavros to contact her if he heard anything about the girl. “Why are you looking for her?”

The question could have been left at that, but then Karkat pushed it further and Terezi narrowed her eyes at the Dunmer, feeling like his questions were accusations. “The same reason I’m looking for every criminal,” she shrugged stiffly, holding her gaze against Karkat. “There’s nothing special about Vriska, as much as she thinks the opposite. She just causes a lot of problems for a lot of people, and maybe if I’d realized it when I was younger I could have done something about it—but as amazing as I am, it only stretches so far,” she sighed, tired of the questions already. “So now I’m older, wiser and stronger—best time as any to make up for lost time.”

Whether or not he believed what she was saying about there being nothing special about Vriska, she’d still reminded him one thing:  her main goal, Dragonborn or not, was still to eliminate criminals, and no one was special, as long as they didn’t obey the laws. “Right,” he grumbled, annoyed with himself for taking it personally when there was never any reason to believe otherwise. At the end of the day, he was still just a criminal to her, and it probably had been stupid to come to this stupid abandoned shack as if to rescue her—she probably would have done fine on her own if he was being honest with himself.

Karkat’s brief ‘right’ didn’t sit well with Terezi, who was aware that she’d probably said the wrong thing. It wasn’t as if what she’d said wasn’t true—she really had intended to wipe out as many criminals as she could while she was alive. Maybe Karkat had applied that to himself, which he was supposed to, obviously. It was supposed to apply to him, and the brief thinking that it wasn’t was dangerous territory again. Still, did she regard him as the same? She was aware that she kept trying to smooth out logic of why Karkat was still alive, when it clear to both of them that she wouldn’t touch the Thieves Guild in a long time. She liked to think it over as trying to reform him; a new experiment that was a big joke to show that you couldn’t reform criminals and they needed to be killed. The only problem was, if that was her true reasoning, Karkat was proving her intended outcome completely wrong.

Before Karkat could get too bitter with her over something he’d always known but had somehow continued to delude himself about, he perked up, eyes narrowing as he heard the sound of footsteps through swampy waters—he couldn’t imagine why any benevolent travelers would be out in this spider-infested swamp, but he did know that the Dark Brotherhood came here, and they hadn’t strayed too far from the shack yet. “Someone’s coming,” he told her quietly, though he doubted she hadn’t picked up on it herself. “Stay here, keep your guard up; I’m gonna see who’s coming. If I don’t come back—” he sighed, picking up his bow from beside him and reaching for an arrow to nock in preparation. “Assume it’s the Brotherhood and get out of here.”

Terezi lifted her head slightly higher to scan around. She couldn’t make out anyone yet, but that didn’t mean anything. Karkat also seemed aware of the danger, picking up his bow as if he was going to leave on his own. ”And if it is the Brotherhood, you won’t survive by yourself,” Terezi scoffed, pulling herself to her feet with great effort. It took a second for her to steady herself, but the drive to survive was always greater than exhaustion. Relying on her race’s ‘reserve’ stamina, Terezi moved to follow Karkat, pulling out her own weapon for the second time that day.

"You’re tired and wounded," he argued, as soon as she stood to join him, and he tried to ignore the nerves starting up at the idea of her getting into a fight in her condition and write them off as concerns for all of Skyrim, as she was, after all, the Dragonborn. "That makes you slow—the Brotherhood is fast, and I know you don’t think a dagger compares to a sword in strength, but they’re faster, and they only need one opening to finish you, and these guys are trained killers—anyway, the Brotherhood and the Guild are technically allies; they might let me live if I don’t hurt them first." Not that he was important enough within the Guild to even be known to the Brotherhood. "Just—why can’t we just meet up at Windhelm and you can just go now? I’ll be fine."

His argument with Terezi had distracted him from the potential enemy headed towards them, to the point where the other was close enough to recognize the sound of several footsteps in the marshy waters, and it was very likely they were too close for Terezi to sneak away. “Just try to stay down,” he requested, glaring at the fire he’d lit in an effort for some comfort. Now it was probably luring the enemies right to them—it had probably been a stupid idea to light one in the first place.

Karkat’s protests aggravated Terezi, who had been more than adapt at fighting even when she hadn’t wanted to. Karkat aimed to incapacitate, Terezi moved to kill—it made sense for her to be there. Although there was sense in what he was saying, it wasn’t sense enough to save both their lives. Their bickering didn’t last long, cut off by the enemy approaching closer. Terezi’s hand closed around her weapon, grip tightening with apprehension as she had to depend on Karkat’s instructions to survive.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> posted up late as we had issues with google docs!
> 
> feel free to ask us anything about to tundra on [our tumblr!](http://to-tundra.tumblr.com/ask)


	15. the pale i

One set of footsteps moved faster than the others, too close now probably for Karkat to snipe with his arrow, and he hurried to swap for his daggers instead while still trying to keep defensively in front of Terezi—and then one of the potential threats slipped through the trees nearby, curiously eyeing the abandoned firepit as if wondering where the people who had built it had disappeared to. It took Karkat a second of recognition, but then the Khajiit’s appearance came back to him, realizing very suddenly why there were so many footsteps and why they were traveling through the terrible marshes. “I know her,” he whispered to Terezi, slipping his daggers back into their hilts. “She’s with a caravan—they travel to Windhelm; we can basically walk with them.” Just as the Khajiit turned away to head back to her caravan, Karkat stepped out from the trees, and the girl turned as she heard the sound before her green eyes widened excitedly. “Karkat!”

"C’mon," he murmured to Terezi, taking her wrist while he led her towards Nepeta, though he released her quickly as he got closer to Nepeta. "Karkat Karkat Karkat!" the khajiit cheered, hurrying towards him excitedly, fingers curling around his body once she was close enough to reach him. "Nepeta hasn’t seen heads or tails of you in moons! You haven’t written! Not a purry kind way to treat your family," she scolded, though he could hear a purr in the back of her throat. "Mother will be purrleased to see you, Karkitty," she purred as she recalled his old nickname, tugging on his arm excitedly, eager to bring her prize back to the caravan. She suddenly caught sight of the Redguard, ears perking at the sight of her. "Ah! And who is Karkitty’s furiend here?"

Terezi watched with curiosity as Karkat and his apparent friend exchanged welcomes, picking up on the fact that her name was Nepeta. It was always strange to listen to Khajiit, and it seemed that this one in particular had an even stranger way of speaking. It took Terezi several seconds to understand what ‘purry’ meant, slowly clicking together all the feline puns as they were spoken. Although she knew next to nothing of this girl, her speech pattern alone had Terezi smiling. ”Terezi Pyrope,” she offered, brain finally catching up with what had just been said. Family? Mother? She threw Karkat a look of confusion, aware that his mother was dead and that Karkat had lived in Windhelm all his childhood—it didn’t exactly add up to what was being exchanged between them and she didn’t like that.

Nepeta didn’t have to drag them back to the caravan—it found them, after a few moments. Just four more Khajiit, half with a knapsack of wares set on their backs and half adorned in armor, made their way through the trees and towards the three of them. Most barely regarded Terezi, making their way to Karkat and Nepeta with eager greetings. “Look how much Karkat has grown!” remarked the leader of the group, quickly cut off by a smart comment from Ra’zhinda, one of the guards. “Ah—but he has not grown very much, if we are being honest, Ma’dran.” Despite their teasings, their voices were purrs and their tail tips twitched with excitement at seeing an old friend again.

"Meulin," Karkat greeted softly when the oldest among the Khajiit arrived, cheerfully cupping his face and touching her nose to his in a personal sort of greeting. Rather than speaking to the woman, Karkat started to use his hands, signing the beginnings of a conversation that the woman received easily, and she signed back to him eagerly.

Wary of snickering about the comments surrounding Karkat’s height, Terezi kept a reasonable distance from the rest of the Khajiit. She wasn’t sure just how they would react to her, or whether there was some kind of custom or hostility they’d feel towards her. She hadn’t ever come into contact with them before, but she was world weary enough to know the hardships they suffered while races like Terezi’s flourished. Her confusion heightened as Karkat and another member began to use their hands, too quick and small in their movements for Terezi to understand just what was going on—but weary that it would end up going against her best interests.

The youngest of the Khajiit turned back to the Redguard, ignoring personal boundaries that should have been in place, considering they’d only just met and tugged her arm as well, only to express her excitement at running into them in the swamp and not to drag her off anywhere. “Nepeta will fill in Miss Purrope, since Karkitty is too busy! This is Nepeta’s caravan! Well, actually, it is Ma’dran’s, him,” she pointed at the tiger-looking Khajiit who was speaking among the armored Khajiit. “And Ma’jhad and Ra’zhinda are our guards, and help purrtect us when we run into enemies. Ah, but, Nepeta can take care of herself, too! Meulin is Nepeta’s mother, and,” she softened slightly, lowering her voice as if her deaf mother would hear and be saddened. “Nepeta’s mother and Karkat’s father were married—after Karkat’s mother died, of course—Nepeta and Karkitty are not related! Mother was saying he looks purry much like his father now,” she whispered, and the Dunmer actually turned to glance at the two of them before returning to his silent conversation. “But but! What about Miss Purrope! Who are you and how do you know our Karkat?” She asked, tilting her head curiously.

She wasn’t exactly sure how to react to Nepeta invading her personal space, not at all used to people being so close to her—which was slightly ironic, considering how Terezi would push into other people’s comfort zone without a second thought. Nepeta’s comment had Terezi glancing back at Karkat again, unaware that his father had remarried: the kid sure did like to play up the poor orphan boy routine far further than it was actually true. Karkat had family, it just seemed like he chose to live away from them. It was nice to know that they had been talking about matters unrelated to her, although assuming anything other than that had been stupid in the first place—it wasn’t as if she had any reason to distrust him anymore. Internally rolling her eyes at the hardships Karkat had presented his family life to be, Terezi turned her attention back to Nepeta and the questions she was asking.

"I’m a traveller," she settled on, the neutral answer that she gave almost everyone who ever asked her. "I met Karkat in Riften and took a shine to him, so I asked him to come along with me. As you can probably tell, I can’t see very well at all, meaning I can’t read or handle long distance attacks; Karkat is rather skilled at both, and I guess he took pity on my situation—or hated Riften that much, perhaps?" She joked, more confident in her ability to lie about her relationship with Karkat now that she knew more about him. She knew that Karkat seemed to gravitate towards the unfortunate, and surely Nepeta would be more sympathetic towards her disability when her own mother was deaf. Terezi was also unaware if Karkat’s family knew he was a thief, and such a thing wasn’t her place to say—especially if it was going to cause a scene when all she wanted was peace, for once.

Nepeta kept her face as neutral as possible when Terezi said she’d taken a shine to him, wondering at the full specifications of their relationship. The Redguard praised Karkat easily, and she was curious how she truly felt about him, but she was more curious even about how Karkat felt about her. Surely he would have mentioned to it her if he liked her, or at least, he’d find time before he left again. They were probably just friends though, she reassured herself. She couldn’t read or do long-range like she said, and Karkat liked to help others. That was probably all there was to it.

"Karkat has yet to tell me more about you," she lied again, mostly for the sake of Nepeta’s feelings of admitting that Karkat had completely forgotten to mention her. Maybe it was out of protection for his family, but Terezi couldn’t really explain that without all but asking everyone surrounding her to attack. "May I ask how your mother and Karkat’s father met? I like stories."

And then Terezi offered a bit of a distraction, something to talk about instead of assuming relationships based on minimal conversational cues, and Nepeta perked up at the chance. “Ah, yes! Nepeta likes to tell stories like this,” she purred, excitedly pulling Terezi away from the other Khajiit—not far, just enough so that Karkat wouldn’t overhear. She knew well that he was still very sensitive over the past, even if he didn’t like to show it. “Well, see, Nepeta’s caravan travels between Solitude and Windhelm—so, we met them on a stop to Windhelm. He and Mother got along well, and he cared furry much about our struggles—you know, despite years in Skyrim being honest purrchants, and we still have to camp in furont of cities to sell our wares!” She paused in her story to scowl, trying to make her displeasure at the way the Nords treated her people very clear to Terezi. “But Karkat’s father was not like the Nords, of course, but he was not like the other Dark Elves either—not content just to deal with the treatment everyone else accepted as the norm! Mother admired him, she believed in him! And, he started to stop by the caravan more and more, and then, you know! Blossoming romance!” She purred clasping her hands together excitedly.

"Mr. Vantas would bring Karkitty down to see us often as well," Nepeta informed her, glancing over at the Dark Elf again fondly. "So that is how Nepeta got to know him! Eventually, Karkitty’s father and Mother got married, although… Nepeta does not think it was an official ceremony. That would have meant traveling to Riften and Nepeta does not think either of our families had any time for that. Still, Mother does not want to take another husband. Nepeta does not think she will ever believe in someone like she believed in Mr. Vantas, and she would not want tabby with anyone else that way. He was very important to Mother, and so is Karkitty." She smiled, glancing towards him once more before smiling at Terezi. "Nepeta is sorry if she couldn’t tell the story furry well! Nepeta was younger at the time, you know." She tilted her head rubbing the back of her neck sheepishly. "But Nepeta hopes she could still tell Miss Purrope what she wanted to know!"

Terezi listened to Nepeta’s story with great interest, happy to be able to learn more about the hero of her mother without having to pry too far with Karkat for him to start asking questions. While she really didn’t care for romantic stories, the sentiments were nice enough and the idea of lighting hope within Nepeta’s mother was interesting to Terezi too. It seemed that in his political and personal life, The Sufferer was always able to spark some kind of good-cult following that Terezi didn’t fully understand.

At least Nepeta’s story also answered other questions, such as why Karkat hadn’t mentioned them before. Her account seemed to corroborate, telling of how Karkat didn’t live with her or her mother. She also felt reassured to know that Karkat simply hadn’t mentioned it because it wasn’t relevant. ”Yeah, that was pretty much what I wanted to know,” she nodded, smiling at the Khajiit with an honest thanks. She spent a few moments watching Karkat and the other Khajiit before absent-mindedly coming up with another question. ”So I’m guessing you and Karkat get on pretty well?”

"We do meow," Nepeta told her, following the Redguard’s gaze to Karkat again. "Karkat did not like Nepeta as much when we were younger. Nepeta gave him too much attention and she was probably too clingy fur him. And fur a while, he did not like the relationship between Mother and hiss father… But meow we are much closer! Nepeta thinks, when you do not have much family, you learn to love what you have. Plus, he was purrobably being a sourpuss about Nepeta anyway!" The Khajiit jumped slightly as the Dunmer approached them again, smiling at Karkat before she slipped passed him and back over to her mother to learn what had transpired between the two of them.

Terezi paid particular attention to the knowledge that Karkat didn’t seem to enjoy people who were too clingy, especially about how he didn’t like too much attention on himself. She didn’t think too much about why that particular information stuck with her, instead trying to focus on what else Nepeta had told her. The more she learnt, the more it fed her curiosity into more questions. She wanted to know why Karkat hadn’t got on with them at first, in his own words. Had he been jealous of the idea of a new mother? Or had he really just disliked Nepeta that much?

Karkat regarded her with some confusion as she moved passed him, wondering what the two of them had discussed without him, but he decided against asking for now. “They’re on their way to Windhelm now,” he told her, glancing back towards the group of the Khajiits, noting that the guards in particular seemed keen on moving on and not lingering much longer. “I figured we could go with them? Ma’jhad and Ra’zhinda are both strong, Meulin is a strong too, with magic and otherwise, and Nepeta’s stealthy and powerful—we have a good group of people around us if we run into trouble, and they know the way with their eyes closed so there’s no chance we’ll get lost.” He paused, glancing back at the Khajiit for a moment before he looked back to Terezi, running his tongue over his lips while he hesitated. “There’s no dark secret here either, like with Kanaya. They’re good people and they can help us get to Windhelm without difficulty. Is that okay with you, traveling with them to Windhelm?” he asked, wanting to make sure she was all right with it and not forcing her into it. “If you don’t want to we can go on our own,” he added, trying to reinforce that.

Karkat interrupted Terezi could ask any Nepeta further questions, taking her thoughts away from what she had said and instead replacing them with options and choices. “Okay, I believe you,” Terezi made sure to interrupt before Karkat could begin another tangent of why they should trust them. In truth, she appreciated his persistence to be transparent with her, even if the reminder of Kanaya had her bristling internally. ”Plus Nepeta seems nice; I’ve been hanging out with dumb boys for way too long,” she teased, although there was a slight bit of truth to it. Terezi couldn’t actually think of the last time she’d hung out with any female friends, especially since everything that had happened with Vriska and Aradia. It wasn’t as if she’d really ever liked Rose either, too jealous and prideful to try and become friends with her. At least Nepeta genuinely did seem nice, and maybe she wouldn’t have a major personality disorder like Vriska and Rose. “Plus you’ll get to hang out with your family, right?”

Karkat narrowed his eyes at Terezi’s comment, but took it in stride, sure that she was just teasing him, even if it was true that she hadn’t spent any time with girls lately. “Well, unfortunately for you, you won’t totally be rid of me. But she’ll probably like you. She likes most people but I think she especially likes talking to batshit people like you so, you’re in luck there.”

And as if on cue, Nepeta appeared again, stepping between them and grabbing both their wrists to pull them along to get them used to keeping up with the quicker pace of the caravan, especially now that they’d wasted some time speaking to the Dunmer and Redguard. “So, Miss Purrope was in Riften when she met Karkitty and Karkitty decided to tag along with her to help her with reading and long-range, right?” Releasing their wrists once she felt they were at a good pace, Nepeta spun to face them both, so confident in the path she’d walked her whole life that she didn’t feel the need to face forwards. “So Purrope, what were you doing in Riften in the furst place? Nepeta does not like that place, so much water! And shifty people,” she added, eyes moving briefly to Karkat as if to tease him. “The only nice thing about that place that Nepeta can think of is the Temple of Mara—but Nepeta does not think you seem that type! What brought Purrope to the stinky fish town?” she asked, eager to learn every detail of the relationship between the two of them in an effort to understand more.

Unfortunately Nepeta asked the one question that Terezi hadn’t had time to flesh out. Resisting the urge to let her lips twitch into a frown, she kept an impassive front and tried to scramble for an answer in the few seconds she knew she had. "Well," she began, tilting her head in Karkat’s direction to see if he was giving any indication of what to say, but such a hope seemed impossible. "I have to agree with you about the water; I hate water, and swimming at that. I guess I was just out looking for cute guys to help out a poor little blind girl," she teased, poking her tongue out at Karkat. "But unfortunately I was unlucky and stumbled across this ugly one instead!" Taking transparent shots at Karkat was easy enough of a task to gain Terezi some more time to think of a real excuse, casually laughing off her teasing as she finally settled on something more substantial. "In reality I’d heard rumours that a friend was staying there. I guess she wasn’t, which made the whole experience ‘purretty' tedious—especially with the state of Riften; it can't be a nice place to live,” she frowned, trying to give an objective opinion of Riften without getting too invested in her own personal feelings or offending too much of the place that Karkat had made his home.

"Nepeta doesn’t think Karkitty is ugly!" Nepeta laughed, whiskers twitching as the Dunmer’s eyes narrowed at Terezi’s insult. "Purrope doesn’t think Karkitty’s even a little cute?” She giggled again as Karkat seemed to get even more defensive as they critiqued him. “Even purrsonality-wise, since…” she trailed off, now a bit confused on how Terezi could be commenting on how ugly Karkat was at all when she was blind, but she shrugged it off. “But even then, he is purretty grumpy…”

"Hmm, a little cute?" Terezi hummed, as if she was seriously considering it. In truth, she wasn’t entirely sure if Karkat was cute or not—the closest she’d gotten to him had been when she’d first apprehended him and when she’d tried to kill him: such situations weren’t ideal for assessing someone’s physical attractiveness, especially for someone who struggled to see properly in the first place. She turned to Karkat with a predatory grin, hands reaching down to cup his face. She kept him like that until he pulled away, not doing anything else apart from looking at him. "Eh, maybe if he was a little stockier; I like to fight with my men," she laughed, clearly happy at how uncomfortable she’d made Karkat.

Karkat was still bristling slightly at the negative focus on himself, but even still he didn’t miss Terezi say she’d heard that a friend was staying there, and he wondered if there was any truth to that—regardless of what she’d told him about Vriska not being any more special than any other criminal, he didn’t believe it, and perhaps she’d thought Vriska would have ties to the Guild. Perhaps she did, and he just wasn’t high up enough in the Guild to know about it. He supposed if he ever got back there again, he could try to find out. “Yeah, Riften’s a shithole,” he replied honestly, feeling the need to remind the two of them that he hadn’t lived there by any choice of his own. “I’m eternally in debt that Terezi decided to rescue a poor ugly guy like me to take along and read her things, truly.”

Nepeta purred in amusement, spinning back to face forward again so she could better avoid all the water in the swamp that she’d essentially been ignoring for the most part. “And where do your feet bring you meow?” she asked, peering over her shoulder briefly before she paused to slowly step across a bigger section of water, thankfully still short enough for her to manage to get across. “And what did you need Karkitty fur, surely not just fur reading sign pawsts?”

Nepeta was either very clever or very oblivious, happening to ask questions that Terezi didn’t have alternative answers for. Luckily the question about needing Karkat was easier, once again just having to apply the knowledge she’d learnt about him. “I need to head to Windhelm; I have business there. Karkat says he knows the place well enough to help me, although I’ll have you know that I am lacking considerable coin now! As much resistance as he put up about going there, I guess every man’s need for coin is greater than his morals.”

"Oh," Nepeta frowned, glancing back between them and then down to the ground—the marsh was changing to more solid ground, which meant they were starting to get closer to where they needed to be. "Nepeta didn’t know Karkitty was taking coin for helping Purrope; that makes things much less fun." In truth, it made things a little better, the idea that Karkat was helping her out of necessity rather than a fondness for her. Which wasn’t to say Nepeta didn’t like the girl; she did, she just wasn’t sure how she felt about the two of them traveling together just for the sake of it, she supposed.

"Yes, Nepeta knows well that Karkitty doesn’t like returning to Windhelm, but Nepeta likes to travel there. Solitude is better—it’s warmer there, and we don’t have the coats for the cold of Skyrim. But… Windhelm does look very impressive. Like a giant stone furtress that you all live in! And Nepeta does think the snow looks pretty, even if she does not like the way it settles in her fur." She paused a moment, ears folding closer to her head and she kept her eyes on the road, a bit unsure of herself as she continued. "What… what are cities like, on the inside? Nepeta knows that you can’t see… but they seem like they would be a warm place, even in the icy colds."

The idea of walking through Skyrim back and forth for your whole life without any real protection from the weather was astonishing to Terezi, and certainly not a feat that she wanted to partake in. It was even worse to even imagine being banned from cities, without having the slightest idea what they could look like inside. A need for knowledge was always Terezi’s vice, and the idea that it could be blocked off from her depending on her race was disgusting. She remember that her mother had talked of times when such divisions weren’t as pronounced as they’d become, talking of Cyrodiil as a haven in comparison. It was through the mix of pity and sympathy that Terezi decided to try and answer Nepeta’s question, regardless of how hostile she’d been about it with Karkat earlier.

"Solitude is warm indeed, much warmer than places like Windhelm," she offered, trying to ignore her own issues to try and give Nepeta some selfless information. "It depends on the city. I guess Karkat would be best to tell you about Windhelm, but I can tell you everything about Solitude. It’s mostly walls, built high up—but if you like exploring then you can pretty much climb most of them because of how much greenery is around. Everything is built in clumps so that you’re always surrounded by people, which keeps things warm that regard. The housing area is just tall buildings and flowers, the climate seems to breed lush grass and beautiful flowers," she reminisced, probably reciting back her memories with a jaded outlook. “The Jarl lives in the Blue Palace and it’s huge, with the roofs tinted blue. The inside of it is so luxurious too, but almost everyone in Solitude has money to spare—it’s not a poor city, really.”

Terezi’s description of the palace captured Nepeta’s attention easily, ears swiveling towards the Redguard to make sure she didn’t miss a single detail of her description of the castle. Terezi made it sound even better than she had ever imagined it, and it made her want to see a city from the inside even more. She envied the other caravans, sometimes—even if they weren’t allowed to enter cities either, some got to travel to cities without massive gates to block away eyes, like Dawnstar. Even if she couldn’t wander among the natives, she could at least see what it looked like. But she moved between two of the biggest cities—the two at war with each other even, and their walls were higher than a little khajiit could ever hope to see past, but Terezi gave her a sort of window, at least, and she appreciated it more than she’d be able to tell her.

"This is what Nepeta thought," she murmured, glancing over her shoulder briefly at the Redguard. "Warm, from all the others. Nepeta loves her family and she would not trade them for all the coins in Skyrim—but it would be nice. To have a home. Is Solitude your home, Purrope?" she asked, only swiveling her ears towards the Redguard instead of  looking towards her this time. Karkat stole a glance towards her as well, curious about the answer to a question he hadn’t been bold enough to ask. Remarkably in having known her only a few minutes, Terezi already seemed to trust Nepeta more—to a point, at least. He doubted he could have made her open up about Solitude at all himself.

At least there was a difference between them; Nepeta had a family who were relatively safe and loved her, while Terezi had no one left. She would have given anything in Skyrim to have her mother back, and being able to enter cities didn’t seem overly great in comparison to the idea of having her family back—as small as it had been. ”I don’t have a home,” Terezi shrugged, managing to side-step Nepeta’s question by changing the meaning of it. Even though Solitude was where she was born and grew up, she didn’t think about it as her home any more—it would be impossible to do so. “I guess my home is wherever my sword is, or some poetic bullshit like that,” she laughed, although there was far more truth in the statement than she liked to think about.

"Or I guess I could just settle down and make a new home with Karkat," she sighed, waving a hand nonchalantly. "But do I really want tiny children? They won’t even be able to hold a sword properly, just topple over with their skinny little arms." The idea amused Terezi far more than it should have done, quietly snickering to herself as she regained some composure. "So what about you, Nepeta? Do you ever make a home outside of the caravan?" To be honest, Terezi wasn’t overly interested in whether she could or not, already assuming that it would be impossible unless she loved another Khajiit. How would they even enter a city to make it official? At least that was the implication that she got from the story of Karkat’s father and Nepeta’s mother.

While Karkat’s eyes rolled back into his skull, Nepeta giggled, placing her hand over her lips in a weak effort to quell her laughter. “Ah, Nepeta doesn’t think they’d be that short! The little ones would do well to take after a strong woman like Purrope!” And she giggled again, hearing Karkat mutter an ‘okay’ of exhaustion at their teasing. "But, no, Nepeta does not have another home outside of her caravan. Even if we are allowed in smaller towns, Nepeta and her family are not welcome there. Nepeta would not want to make a home somewhere she is not welcome. Purrhaps… maybe someday Nepeta will find a place that welcomes her. Maybe someday the city doors will open to her, too! We will see,” she hummed, shrugging her shoulders casually as she lead them on.

Eventually they wandered back into the snowy mountains of the Pale, and while Karkat couldn’t tell exactly how far from Windhelm they were, the Khajiit likely could, and the caravan stopped moving and decided to set up camp. “We are not far from Windhelm,” Nepeta informed them, wrapping her arms around herself to keep a bit warmer. “But it is dark now, and a bigger group attracts more attention from those who might seek to harm us. Ma’jhad thinks that resting here until morning is safer. However, if Karkitty and Purrope need to get Windhelm as soon as possible, they only need to continue in this same direction,” she offered, though she wasn’t so keen on them leaving just yet. “We will be making camp now, and fire, and you are welcome to join us if you choose.” And with that, the Khajiit smiled and turned away to join the rest of her caravan.

Terezi bristled against the changing weather, eyeing up the Khajiit’s fur with wistfulness. As determined as she was to return to Windhelm, she wasn’t looking forwards to another few days of freezing slowly. Maybe it would have been a smarter idea to put on warmer clothes, but the risk of removing or hindering her armour didn’t seem any more appealing than freezing to death—especially when it had all but saved her life against the assassin’s attacks. It seemed that the caravan also noticed the climate change, although somewhat more gracefully than Terezi’s internal complaining.

The idea of joining the caravan and their fire was enticing, for reasons that didn’t just include the prospect of keeping warm—which both the Redguard and Dunmer seemed to be in need of. ”The smartest choice is to stay with them,” Terezi firmly decided, grabbing onto the chance to actually sleep instead of stay awake terrified all night. The chances of being kidnapped again would be limited if everyone around her was attuned to listening out for disturbances, with Karkat having already vouched for their strength and skills. “We can travel with them to Windhelm, and finally get back to Aventus—assuming someone hasn’t already told him,” she frowned, agitated by the fact they’d gotten sidetracked thanks to the day’s earlier events.

Karkat held his breath while he waited for Terezi’s reply, letting it out a heavy sigh of relief when she agreed to stay for the night—more for the fact that his feet were exhausted and he hadn’t slept since he’d found the note the Brotherhood had left. The idea of curling up beside a warm fire sounded amazing to him—not as great as getting to sleep in a bed at an inn but, he knew they weren’t going to make it to one of those tonight. “Great, okay. You do not know how tired I am of walking.” He turned away from her briefly, meeting eyes with Meulin and signing to her that they would be staying. “Even if Aventus has heard, I’m sure he’ll still want to thank you for what you did. He’ll have a payment for you too, I’m sure,” he added, though he wasn’t sure how great a payment a child like Aventus could even offer. “Anyway, c’mon.”

He headed over to the Khajiit, watching as they easily started a fire with Meulin’s magic abilities and settled down by the fire, idly watching the Khajiit speak among themselves while he tried to get warm. Karkat glanced towards Terezi idly, crossing his arms over his knees and resting his chin on his arms. “Are you okay with sleeping?” he asked gingerly, not wanting to upset her, but at the same time he didn’t like the idea that she was still unsettled from everything and he was just ignoring it. “I mean…” he sighed, running his finger along the snowy ground. “Are you okay, in general, I guess? Going back to Windhelm after what happened, are you going to be okay staying there again, even?”

She joined Karkat as he sat down, glancing over the other members as they spoke. It was almost surreal to be sat around with Khajiit, especially seeing as they were his family. She looked over Nepeta’s mom again, interested in her and the way she’d handled her disability. The idea of communicating with their hands was also interesting, although very impractical for Terezi to understand or use. Karkat managed to ask her a question before she had time to push further about their hand actions, immediately ruffling from thinking about whether she could sleep or not. Although in theory she was sure it would be fine with the company they were surrounded with, but that didn’t mean that it would be the same in practise.

The idea of returning to Windhelm was also uncomfortable, unable to know how she’d been found there. It was obvious that someone was an informant—and that anyone could be for the right amount of gold—but the paranoia of not knowing who exactly was a very uneasy feeling. ”It’s cold,” she replied, unable to drag out anything better to reply with. She wasn’t used to acknowledging her own discomfort, let alone admitting it to other people. Drawing her knees up to all-but mirror Karkat’s position, she let her hands idly skim along the fur of her armour. “But Windhelm itself is even colder, so it’s best to suck it up instead of complaining about it.”

Karkat frowned at her minimal response, moderately certain that that meant she wasn’t entirely comfortable going back. He didn’t blame her; he knew well enough that nothing good happened within the walls of Windhelm. “The fire’s warm, though,” he murmured, nudging her lightly in an effort to get her to move a little closer to it. “We don’t have to stay long—we can be in and out, no problem. Straight to Aventus, and then—” Karkat frowned, unsure if they had another planned destination ahead of them or if he had forgotten.

"We could go back to Riverwood? See what Delphine wants to do next, if you want." He fell silent for a moment, only watching the fire while he thought about what they had to do in the future. "We might want to mention what happened to you to a guard, too," he suggested quietly, not wanting to go into details. "They might… have some sort of plan to stop the Brotherhood, you know?" Sighing, Karkat leaned away from the fire and shifted to a more comfortable position before he looked towards the Redguard. "But we should get some sleep for now."

"Yeah," she agreed, taking his cue and scooting a little closer to the fire. The warmth flickered across her face, with the intense colour from the flames blocking out most other parts of her vision. She snorted bitterly as Karkat spoke about the guards having a plan, more than sure that it would be impossible. "Yeah, right," she muttered, sure that even if they did, it wouldn’t work. If the Brotherhood were going to turn up in the middle of the night and drag her from her bed to an abandoned shack over the Aventus contract then there was little hope for anyone apprehending them. Let alone the mind-games they seemed to play with their logic. Terezi didn’t really want to go back to Delphine either, especially if she was just going to have her go out and kill another dragon.

Sighing quietly, it seemed like there wasn’t much choice but to stare at the fire or sleep—even though the latter didn’t sound too enticing. Even if she trusted the abilities of the Khajiit, it didn’t mean that she had any personal connection to them; the only nearby person she felt person trust in was Karkat, and his shifting made her apprehensive about him moving. Tugging on the bottom of his clothes, Terezi let her hands fist there for a moment before letting go and turning back towards the fire, mumbling quietly. “Stay close.”

Karkat felt himself tense as Terezi tugged on his shirt, looking towards her with confusion. He hadn’t expected she’d openly ask him to stay with her—if anything, he’d expected her to make up some sort of excuse so she wouldn’t have to be alone. The fact that she hadn’t made Karkat even more aware of how frightened she must have been by the whole ordeal with the assassin, and he remembered how she’d held on to him for a while longer than she would have normally once he’d found her again, and the way she’d touched his hand when he’d patched her wounds. “I will,” he told her, meeting her eyes for a moment before he let his eyes fall again.

"Plus, the Khajiit will be on guard all night—one or the other is always on guard duty so no one will be able to get close to us without them knowing." Karkat hesitated a moment before he carefully lifted his hand to touch her knee, only for a moment before he pulled back, keeping his eyes away from her very deliberately now. "I’ll—like you said, I’ll stay close," he muttered, shrugging as if to dispel the awkward tension he might have accidentally brought on with probably being more personal than need be. "I mean—let’s just get some rest. I’m tired."

Already feeling pathetic from needing to outwardly express her desire for company, Karkat’s respectful reply was more than welcomed by Terezi. She let out a quiet breath, slightly more relaxed as she continued to watch the fire. She kept it firmly there as she felt a hand on her knee, aware enough of Karkat moving not to jump. It was easier to ignore the warmth at her knee than acknowledge it, although the task became harder when Karkat was reiterating her request. Taking another small breath, sleeping seemed like a better idea than it had earlier, and Terezi followed Karkat’s lead in attempting it.

However, deciding to sleep simply wasn’t enough—it was a constant battle between her mind and her body, but the fire was warm and her body was still exhausted. Letting her breathing even out, Terezi fell asleep quicker than she anticipated. That wasn’t to say that it was an easy sleep, and she rolled back and forth around her space—unsettled by dreams and the dropping temperature. She’d moved further away from the fire, unconsciously rolling towards the next source of heat.

Exhausted as he was from all his travel, Karkat didn’t fall asleep as quickly as he’d expected, as if once he’d closed his eyes to sleep they suddenly no longer felt tired, but the instant he opened his eyelids again they were back to hurting and drooping over his red eyes. He could hear Terezi shifting about behind him, occasionally glancing over his shoulder to be sure she was all right—and he considered waking her, assuming she might’ve been having a bad dream, but as he’d always fallen asleep before her, it was entirely possible also that she just happened to be a rough sleeper. She was always too far away from him as well for him to have noticed, and so he let her shuffle about, deciding he would intervene if it became very obvious she was distressed—he imagined he would only be yelled at for fussing too much if he tried to wake her now.

When she rolled into him, he tensed up, unsure what he was meant to do, and then she’d all but tossed her arm over him and he was even more at a loss about what to do. “Terezi?” he whispered, hoping maybe she would wake up, realize her mistake and shuffle away without making things more awkward for either of them, but he had no such luck; the Redguard was out cold with her arm wrapped around him. For a long couple of minutes, he didn’t move, shoulders still rigid under the unexpected contact while he waited for her to toss and turn again, away from him this time, but it didn’t seem to be happening now. After all the shifting before, she seemed to have settled here, at least for the moment.

She felt warmer than the fire, in a good way, at least. The Pale was bitterly and bitingly cold, and as uncomfortable as he might’ve been with Terezi’s sudden accidental invasion of his personal space, he couldn’t deny how welcome the warmth felt to him. He could feel her hand against his side—he felt like he could count exactly how many inches away from his own hand hers was, and his fingers twitched knowing how close they were. “Are you awake?” he asked again, still hoping she would suddenly roll away and spare him this whole mess.

But again, she didn’t move or reply, and curiosity, as well as something else Karkat wasn’t sure he wanted to put a label on, drove him to move. He reached for her hand against all his better judgement, lightly ghosting his fingers across the top of hers, hesitating briefly before he slid his slimmer fingers between hers. He didn’t know what he was doing, and he could hear his heart beating in his ears. He still didn’t even know why he was here—he could have fled when she’d been kidnapped and he could be miles away from her, and instead he was making his third trip to fucking Windhelm of all places with his captor’s hand clasped in his own. It didn’t make any sense, and he couldn’t work out his own feelings—granted, he’d wanted to get to a place where they could be friendly instead of walking on a razor thin line between worth enough to keep alive and a knife at his throat, but he hadn’t meant to end up here. Wherever here even was, he still couldn’t work it out, and to be frank, he wasn’t sure he wanted to try to work it out.

And then her hand moved, fingers curling around his and her thumb rising to meet his, and as soon as he realized she was holding his hand back, he jerked away, clenching his hands into fists and crossing his arms over his chest again. He didn’t want to think about what had just happened, and what he had sort of pretended not to realize. Terezi didn’t even consider him a friend, and she’d probably still cut his throat when she got the chance, or when he outlived his usefulness, rather. She’d said earlier today, it didn’t matter if a person had ties to her—a criminal was a criminal, just like any other criminal, and even if she’d been speaking about Vriska at the time, it didn’t mean something like that shouldn’t apply to him. An angry breath hissing out of him, he curled up a little more and clenched his eyes closed tight as if he could force himself to fall asleep just like that.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello nepeta  
> [](http://to-tundra.tumblr.com/nepeta)


	16. windhelm ii

The third trip to Windhelm was no easier than the first two, although there was the silver lining of this trip being a short one to make the city a little easier to deal with. It should have been as simple as rounding the first right, passing Calixto’s Curiosities and then onward to Aventus Aretino’s for a quick moment before they could head back out again.

By all regards, Karkat should have known things wouldn’t be so easy.

Despite how early in the day it was, a few Nord men stood outside Candlehearth Hall, mugs in their hands and mead on their breath, and Karkat recognized one of them as a Nord who had been picking on his kind for as long as he could remember, Rolff Stone-fist, and he was near the bottom on the list of people Karkat felt like dealing with at the moment. But fate could never be so kind, and Rolff noticed Karkat’s stare and greeted it with the same malice he met ever Dunmer with. “Come on, hurry up,” Karkat whispered to Terezi, hoping she understood social cues well enough to help him steer clear of a confrontation. But again, fate was cruel, and she didn’t get the chance to prove if she could understand his social cue because Rolff had reached out for Karkat’s upper arm and pulled him back from walking away from him.

"You been in an’ out a’ here a lot lately, haven’t you gray-skin?" the Nord gritted out, and Karkat recoiled slightly, letting his head fall to keep himself from getting into more trouble. "People are gettin’ suspicious a you."

Rolling his eyes, Karkat glanced up slightly at the Nord, making a minimal attempt to mask his annoyance. “Suspicious of what exactly?”

"Wouldn’t you like to know?" Rolff taunted, pausing to take a swallow of his mead. "Been lots of suspicious thing happenin’ here lately, folks think you Dark Elves could be Imperial spies. Could be the reason dead girls are turning up in the alleys at night."

Red eyes narrowing, Karkat let out an exasperated breath, having almost forgotten his company for the moment. “You know that’s a load of bullshit,” he hissed, though he did manage to stop himself before he ended up another dead corpse in an alley as well—accusing a Nord who was likely one of his mother’s killers of having more to do with dead girls turning up in alleys than him seemed like a quick way to a beating.

It didn’t seem to matter that Karkat had held his tongue—what he had said was enough to anger the man regardless. “Your people reek of treachery—got more reason than we do to fill the streets with Nord bodies.” As if to emphasize his statement, he gave Karkat a rough shove, sending the Dark Elf back a pace and leaving him bristling.

Still, Karkat didn’t have time for this—neither did Terezi, as he recalled, having nearly been thrown into her by the massive Nord, and so he swallowed down his anger and stepped towards her, muttering a quiet, “let’s just get moving,” to her while Rolff shouted something racist about his being a coward at his back.

Most of their previous times in Windhelm had been so tame that Terezi had almost forgotten the prejudice and suffering that the Dunmer had to go through, but the second Karkat was called out on it there was no way to accidentally ignore it. She silently bristled in the background as he was accused and harassed, only refusing to step in so that Karkat wasn’t further tormented for having her step in. That didn’t mean she was happy about it, teeth gritting as her arms moved to steady him as he was pushed. It was then that she’d had enough, ignoring Karkat’s words and stepping in front of him to face the other man.

"You," he slurred, the noise offending Terezi’s eardrums. "You a Dark Elf lover? Get out of our city, you filthy piece of trash."

It was then that Terezi sized him up properly, He was a well-built man, but she was an even better woman. If he wasn’t going to watch his mouth then she’d be more than happy to do it for him, unafraid of his threats. “So what if I am?” She straightened up, hands moving to her hips in disgust. Although alcohol could usually twist people into nasty beings, there was no excuse for the repulsive drivel pouring from his lips. ”What’s it the business of a drunken racist?” She hissed lowly, stepping forwards into his personal space.

"Don’t like it? Too bad; this is our city. Ours! Don’t think I can take you? One hundred septims says I can punch you back where you came from," he taunted her back, also stepping forwards to meet her height. She twitched as he swayed, unsure if a fight could even be honourable or fair if the opposition was already plastered—but then she had to examine whether she really cared; she wasn’t fighting for the experience, she was fighting because the guy was an asshole.

"I couldn’t care less about the money," she growled, catching the movement of man’s body as his arm swung slower than if he had been sober. Terezi ducked out of his reach, pushing the arm away and instead colliding her own fist against the man’s face. A shock of pain went up her arm as she did so, but she knew it was nothing in comparison to the prospect of a broken nose. He threw another punch in retaliation, grazing over Terezi’s chin as she pushed herself away from it and ended up with his other fist across her face. She hissed in pain, forever disadvantaged in combat.

Ignoring the sudden liquid running down her face, Terezi managed to block the next hit: using the momentum to punch him again, this time getting a better angle on his cheek. She growled angrily as he got another hit on her in retaliation, deciding to go past the ‘usual’ blows and find a gap; putting all her effort into slamming her fist against his chest. The man was drunk enough to already have his breathing laboured before they’d begun, let alone now that she’d winded him. He dropped to the ground in defeat, with Terezi wiping blood off her face with the back of her hand. On spur of the moment from adrenaline, she spat a mess of blood and spittle onto him—baring her teeth as he threatened her from underneath.

While Karkat knew Terezi was rash and passionate, he hadn’t expected her to engage in a brawl in the streets, especially for the sake of defending him. For the first couple of hits, Karkat was just frozen in confusion, and the fight ended again before he even had a chance to do anything. It was Rolff who dropped, but Terezi was bleeding a fair amount regardless, and finally Karkat managed to get himself to move, stepping towards her as she spat on the Nord. Wordlessly, he grabbed her arm, a bit harshly this time and dragged her away from the sniveling drunk and into the inn, moving straight past the innkeeper and into one of the rooms, deciding that as long as they didn’t spend the night in the room there was no harm in briefly using it. “You shouldn’t have done that,” Karkat muttered, moving away from her again the close the door, which would hopefully discourage Elda Early-Dawn from bothering them—the innkeeper already didn’t like Dark Elves, he doubted borrowing a room without pay would raise her impression of them.

"You can’t change the mind of someone like that," he sighed, stepping back over to Terezi and pulling what was left of their linen wrap from the bag and dabbing at the blood on her face, "My dad spent years trying to make them see reason—they’ll never see it, they’ll never—" Karkat stopped suddenly, speaking and cleaning her face, before he sighed quietly and turned the cloth over to the clean edge to continue with her wound.

"Did it look like I was trying to make him see reason?" Terezi sulked, still scrunching up her nose as Karkat finished mopping up the state she’d allowed her face to get into. She should have moved faster, or she should have anticipated his hits; it was embarrassing to take such blows from a drunken racist when she was supposed to be ten times better than him. "If I wanted him to understand why he’s so problematic then I would have waited for him to sober up and then used some kind of scare tactic while explaining my reasonings and his fallacies: not just try and beat his face to a pulp."

"Sorry," he whispered, lowering his eyes and focusing on cleaning her up. "I appreciate what you did, just—" he faltered again, clearing his throat. "Sorry. That you got hurt." Once it looked like the bleeding at stopped, or at the very least slowed, Karkat moved away, setting the blood-covered rag down on the end table. “Can you heal it yourself?” he asked, closing his hands into nervous fists as he did. “Or did you want me to make a salve for it?”

Sighing as Karkat apologized, Terezi shook her head in refusal of his apology. “Why say sorry? You didn’t do anything; that’s exactly the reason why I was happy to fight him. I got hurt because I couldn’t see what was happening, especially when it all just turned to snowberries.” Sighing again, Terezi wondered what choice she was supposed to make—in truth, it was much easier just to heal herself and be done with it; she’d never relied on Karkat’s ‘old fashioned’ methods before. However, she sort of liked the attention he put into making the salves, interested in his ability and the care he put into treating her. “I like the salve better,” she muttered, attention casually wandering away from Karkat.

Karkat’s brow raised slightly when she said she’d prefer the salve, knowing it didn’t work as fast or heal as well as a spell did, but he didn’t argue with her. Perhaps she wasn’t skilled at magic and using it tired her out or something—he couldn’t think of many who would prefer alchemy to magic, and he knew if he could use restoration magic, he’d likely never touch another salve again. But he had offered, and he didn’t want to leave her face in the state it was in, especially not when she’d earned the wounds because of him.

The Dunmer dug into his bag again, fishing around for ingredients and noticing that the ones that served this purpose were getting a bit low, and he’d have to put more care into gathering some next time Terezi dragged him off somewhere, as he couldn’t afford to just purchase new ones. But he had enough for this, taking butterfly wings and mushrooms and grinding them together to a pulp. “Well, just count yourself lucky your race is considered human,” he told her, pressing the pestle against a bit of the butterfly wing and watching as blue powdery flakes fell from them. “If you even just spoke out like that to a Nord like Stone-Fist and you were one of mine,” he gave a soft, bitter chuckle as he ground the mushroom down, “We’d probably be finding you dead in a back alley.” Sharp-tongued as he usually was, he’d learned that lesson the hard way.

Disregarding that line of thought for the moment, Karkat set the pestle down and stepped closer to Terezi again, eyes narrowing as he noted there was some blood gathered on her lip again, and he moved to wipe it—the linen wrap he’d used was already soiled with blood and he didn’t want to have to waste more for something so small, so instead he merely grazed his fingers against it, managing to get the remaining blood clear. “I used the least gross ingredients I could, considering it’s going on your lip, so you’re welcome,” he teased, dipping his index and middle fingers into the salve before raising it to gently apply to the cut on her lip. “Could’ve used sabre cat eye, or skeever hide you know.” As he applied the mixture, he slowly became aware that he was touching her lips—a thought which flustered him very quickly and he sped up the application so he could move his hands away. “There,” he murmured, voice slightly shaky as he scraped what was left of the salve back into the bowl. “It should heal up fine now.”

She kept her lips from parting as he touched them, purposely keeping her breathing steady as he wiped some blood away. If there was any lesson she was learning, it was that she was truly fucked. Deep down, she knew the real reason why she’d skipped over healing herself, and why she’d reacted so strongly to being called a Dark Elf lover as if it was an act to be ashamed of. She kept a further neutral expression as he applied the salve, only tilting her head down enough to catch his expression and meeting the strange, yet delicious, slits of snowberry. “My hero, I’m so honoured that you’d spare such ingredients—regardless of the fact I’m sure you know by now that I wouldn’t care.”

Resisting the urge to lick off the salve, Terezi had a terrible thought as Karkat turned away from her. With a vague acceptance of her motives, there also came a vague need to push and test herself—not to mention Karkat too. ”That’s it?” She raised her eyebrows, looking at Karkat as if he was stupid. “You’re not even going to finish off the proper order of events?” The words were out of her mouth before she’d fully even thought about them. It wasn’t as if teasing and taunting Karkat was anything new, and at most he’d just splutter and blush and tell her to fuck off. ”It’s not gonna work unless you kiss it better, stupid.”

For a few seconds after Terezi finished speaking, Karkat found himself incapable, chest tight at what she had just suggested. He wasn’t sure how to reply—anything felt like the wrong thing, and he was already flustered just touching her lips with his fingers. What if he said something that accidentally implied how he really felt? As if he was even fully aware of how he really felt, but he knew enough to know that it wasn’t the sort of feeling Terezi would appreciate. And why was she asking that, anyway? He didn’t believe it could be out of loneliness, but the other end of the spectrum was even more illogical.

"I haven’t done that any other time," he finally managed, actively working to keep himself from becoming obviously embarrassed, full aware of how easily it had been happening lately. "It’s healed everything else okay and now suddenly the salve only isn’t gonna cut it? Doesn’t make much sense." And even as he was saying it, he was still trying to work out why she had said it, why she was requesting something like this from him.

He had some idea, though he wasn’t sure of it—but it seemed more likely than literally any other possibility. “Is this part of that whole degradation kink thing?” he asked, trying to keep his voice sounding teasing while he was internally panicking. “It’s hardly fair to take advantage of a kind alchemist’s shabby patch job and use it for your own personal gain,” and he pulled a mock frown of distress to go along with it, although to be fair, the distress might not have been entirely faked.

"Yeah well maybe if you’d kissed your own neck then I wouldn’t be right about that scar forming," she hummed easily, reaching forwards to lightly brush the tips of her fingers against the front of his throat. She was much more confident in pushing the matter if she could play up to a role, and adding the banter back into their dynamic opened up such a role for her. It was even better when Karkat dragged the degradation kink back into it, able to bounce off of it to reflect her ulterior motives. "And what if it is?" She questioned, torn between pushing that route even further or switching completely.

"Plus if I didn’t use anything to my personal gain than I would be probably be dead by now: a girl’s gotta make some kind of living, and right now I feel like the best interest of me being alive is if you don’t fuck this up," she sighed, heavy with the weight of Karkat’s burdens. In reality, she was scanning every movement he made to weigh up his response and reactions—how far was she pushing before it was too far? Not that she had any right to push in the first place, but it wasn’t as if Terezi had the best social skills. If manipulation could get her what she wanted, then she’d exploit it.

Karkat had an argument ready at the tip of his tongue, mostly to criticize Terezi on the idiocy of what she’d just said, but then she reached out to touch his neck and his retort died in his throat. His attempts at dissuading her were like fuel on the fire, and she easily spun his excuses and disarmed him, leaving him helpless to come up with a decent reason why not to when it seemed she could turn anything around on him. This whole matter was strange, as well—she’d punched a man in the face for bothering him and now she was pestering him, admittedly not to the same degree, but it was like every time he thought their relationship was a certain type of relationship, Terezi rocked the boat and turned it into something else without any warning.

And it was hard to argue against something he wanted—coming up with reasons not to was increasingly difficult, short of the simple truth that he liked her—he liked her and he didn’t want to kiss her as some dumb joke about healing her so she could get a laugh out of how flustered a simple gesture could make someone. Not to mention that in the end, he didn’t know how serious she was—if he did as she asked and she’d only been messing with him, he’d be the one rocking the boat and changing their barely stable as it was relationship into an awkward mess. But she wasn’t taking no for an answer; what else was there to do?

He hesitated a moment, sort of gathering his courage for what he was about to do, and then he leaned forward, hand finding hold on the wall behind her for balance while he leaned in, parting his lips slightly to press a soft kiss to her torn lip. He didn’t think he stayed even a second before he pulled back, his throat tight from his nerves and his heart beating a mile a minute, and he hoped it wasn’t true about blind people having better senses elsewhere. “You should heal fine now,” he whispered, not sure enough of himself to speak up anymore before he stepped towards the door, hesitated to look towards Terezi, though he couldn’t manage to look directly at her. “Let’s go see Aventus before some other shit gets in our way.”

There was no way to deny it any longer, she was sure that she was interested in Karkat—her little spur of the moment experiment proving it. What her mother would think about Terezi’s interest in a boy who was the type her mother had imprisoned? The thought made her squirm, until she realized that it wasn’t just a thief—it was Kankri Vantas’ son, the man that her mother had adored and followed. Maybe Karkat wasn’t a hero like his father, but he was still a good man—it was just conflicting to believe so when her own scheme of criminals was so black and white. If she ignored the part about him being criminal, then things were perfect—but it was the root of the problem here: it was the reason why he was still around anyway.

Or was it? She started to wonder, still unable to pinpoint why exactly he’d actively searched for her. Maybe his loyalties to the guild didn’t run deep, only born out of necessity, and maybe he’d then reasoned that Terezi was a safer bet for his own interests. However, she knew that was unlikely, and his whisper seemed to fill up the room, telling too much. “As if the innkeeper isn’t going to kick up a fuss about you just taking a room for five minutes,” she teased easily—almost too easily. As Karkat turned away again to exist, a small smirk made its way onto Terezi’s lips. She might have been a fool to have feelings for someone like Karkat, but she was sure that she wasn’t alone in her idiocy.

Karkat didn’t waste time with the innkeeper; with any luck he would never have to deal with her again. It was just telling Aventus they’d done what he’d asked and they could finally leave this wretched shithole of a city behind. He didn’t reach to pull Terezi along this time, still reeling with embarrassment at what had happened but if he didn’t look at her, she couldn’t see his reaction. He lead her the long way around Candlehearth as well, not wanting to run into an angrier, drunker Rolff Stone-fist. This inadvertently meant dragging her through some of the Grey Quarter, but there was little he could do about that aside from walk briskly and hope no one tried to speak to him.

As predicted, Aventus did already know of Grelod’s death, congratulating and thanking Terezi the instant she entered his line of sight. He was heavy with thank yous but fell short when it came to her reward, sheepishly falling quiet as he handed her a plate, explaining it was a family heirloom and all he had to offer, and he was sorry he didn’t have any coin for her but the plate should be worth something. But he was excited to go back to Honorhall and see his friends again now that Constance was in charge, and he thanked her again for that, and Karkat smiled when she set the plate down on one of the tables to leave for him.

Finally settling things with Aventus was a weight off of Terezi’s shoulders—able to leave Windhelm behind and focus on other matters, such as how far she was willing to help Delphine and whether she was still determined to use Karkat as she’d first intended. The only awkward part of the exchange was when he’d handed her his family heirloom, more than aware of her own family heirloom tethered to her armour. She took it at first, to be polite, but made sure to leave it on a table as they left—he’d need it more than she would. With hope that he’d at least clean up the mess he’d made before leaving the house forever, Terezi was able to leave that chapter behind.

However, it seemed the next was just about to open as they began to walk back through the streets, ears pricking up to the discussion of a murder—and another murder at that! It was obviously a very devastating situation, very devastating, but oh-so exciting too. If there was more than one murder than obviously the guards weren’t helping out much, and Terezi was the type of vigilante citizen to happily offer her ‘experience’ and ‘expert opinion’ on the matter.

“Let’s get out of here,” Karkat suggested, pleading to Divines that she would have the sense to agree.

”That’s the complete opposite of what we’re doing,” she grinned in reply, way too happy for someone who was about to investigate the murder of women. “I guess we’re not done in Windhelm after all; c’mon, let’s go check it out,” she bounced, beginning to scour the area for guards.

Karkat could only groan with exasperation as Terezi made her way directly towards the scene of the crime, the Dunmer lingering along a few steps behind her. The scene was gruesome—it was more than just a murder, the girl was just about naked, torn apart with holes in her stomach as if someone had fished around inside her. She made Terezi’s typical threats sound weak, and Karkat was sure he didn’t want to stick around here and risk running into the murderer himself. After a moment, he realized that he recognized the girl—the barmaid from Candlehearth Hall, Susanna, who offered service to the Dunmer when Elda turned up her nose. Granted, he’d never been close with her, but it saddened him to see someone he’d known, and someone who had been kind to him killed, especially in such a brutal way.

"What happened?" Karkat asked, mostly expecting the guard to ignore him, but whether the guard was unbiased or they saw interest in Terezi as well, she didn’t. "Another girl killed. This is Susanna, from Candlehearth Hall." Suddenly, Karkat remembered what Rolff had said, what he had accused him of—girls turning up dead, and he suddenly connected it to this crime. "Another girl?" he asked anyway, hoping the guard might have more information to offer. And it seemed she did—she looked uncomfortable for a moment, looking towards Susanna’s corpse before she sighed. "With the war going on, our men are stretched thin. We haven’t the man power to launch an investigation into the murders…"

The guards not having the time or men to investigate a murder was nothing new to Karkat, though Susanna had been a Nord—it was, admittedly, a bit strange that in the city that cared only for Nords, no one could be bothered to protect them. But it was also clear the killer was targeting women, and Karkat didn’t want the idiot Dragonborn caught in the crosshairs. “Okay, now you know the scoop,” he turned towards her, gesturing with his head away from the graveyard and back toward the exit of the city. “There’s nothing anyone can do about it; let’s go.”

Terezi internally grimaced at the state of the body, but remained impassive in her facial features. There were lacerations to multiple part of the girl’s body, with what looked like a hole through her stomach area; whoever had killed her had obviously gotten carried away. She listened carefully to the conversation between Karkat and the guard, instantly attentive to that fact that no one was investigating it. Terezi could easily do that: she was happy to do it for free with the kind of dedication that the guard’s couldn’t afford to.

"What kind of attitude is that?" Terezi hissed at Karkat, vexed by his cavalier comment. "That girl was innocent and someone murdered her and you’re saying there’s nothing to be done about it? Don’t speak at all if you’re going to say something so stupid again," she tutted, turning back towards the body with an even deeper frown. It didn’t look like there was much she could comb from the body—maybe somebody else could have, but her sight just didn’t allow for any in-depth analysis. The next logic step of action was to question everyone else standing around, maybe they could have seen something she didn’t.

She spent time speaking to all of them, barely able to scrape a coherent story together; a scream, a man running away and an intact coin purse. Frustrated but undeterred, Terezi returned to the guard that Karkat had been talking to: only she seemed unsurprised by the lack of witnesses, almost as if she’d been expecting it. She didn’t like the tone the guard took with her, but brushed it off as Nords being their typical proud selves; the thought that Terezi knew she was better didn’t even fathom into a spoken sentence. “Jorleif, got it,” she nodded as the guard explained that she’d need clearance to essentially take on the murders as her own to investigate. ”I guess we can’t go much further until we go speak to him,” Terezi looked over Karkat, unsure if taking him up to the Jarl’s Palace was a sensitive idea. “You can hang around somewhere else if you want; I’m a big girl.”

Terezi’s offer to hang around while she headed to the palace was like a weight off his chest, relieved that she finally trusted him enough to let him alone once in a while without tying him to a spoke like a horse or guilting him into holding onto some precious childhood book—but as soon as the relief warmed him, it left him again, recalling what he’d learned moments ago. Someone in Windhelm was going around killing girls—and granted, it could only have been local girls but unless it was some unfortunate bachelor who had been spurned by everyone in this terrible city he had ever tried to hit on, he doubted they would generalize on whether the girl they tore the stomach out of was local flavor or not. Terezi was strong, but she had her handicaps—if someone did manage to surprise her, she might not be able to counter them, but if he was around, watching her back for her, maybe she would make it out of Windhelm yet. “No,” he shrugged, trying to seem casual about it while he strode past her and towards the palace, though he kept his pace slow so that she could easily catch up and overtake him. “I’m coming too.”

"If you insist," Terezi replied with a hint of skepticism, surprised by Karkat’s apparent determination to come to the Palace, especially considering that he didn’t want to be investigating the murder. She couldn’t say that the Palace was too impressive: especially when Solitude had its own that was far more beautiful against the backdrop of grass, which was certainly different from the snow that surrounded everything in Windhelm. The inside of the Palace was certainly grand, but still had nothing on her home. An even grander spectacle seemed to be tucked behind a closed door, with a thick Nord accent having a loud discussion with someone else. Realization dawned on her as she paid too much attention to it, glancing at Karkat to judge his reaction but unable to gauge the issue further before Jorleif spotted her.

She’d expected further resistance from Jorleif if the guards were any example to go by, however the man seemed incompetent enough to encourage her exploits further. “These are difficult times indeed, when men stalk their brethren like beasts. My men are stretched thin as it is. If you offer your aid, I gladly accept. The guards will be told to assist you as necessary,” he promised, leaving Terezi smiling with gratitude at his service to her and his city. “I’m happy to lend a hand as much as I can, as well,” he added, although the Redguard was dubious of how much he could really help her with aside from anything she needed a position of authority to achieve. “You have my gratitude,” she offered politely, wanting to slip out of the Palace as soon as possible to start investigating, but also to get Karkat away from the Jarl’s booming voice.

Stepping back into the snow and frowning at the temperature, Terezi was able to put more attention back onto Karkat. “Still there?” She nudged, not really happy with his muttered reply but unable to do much about it. “Well, I guess we should go back to the scene of the crime—there’s not much we can investigate there but maybe we missed something.”

Begrudgingly, Karkat followed her back to the scene of the crime, hoping the lack of subject matter to investigate would force her to give up on the fool’s errand—as if anyone could put a stop to the crimes that went on in this city. There was always blood on the ice here, and Karkat was sure there always would be, as long as Ulfric remained in power. By the time they’d gone back to the graveyard, Susanna the Wicked’s body had been moved, likely to the Hall of the Dead where the Priestess of Arkay would be preparing her corpse. “We could check in with the Priestess,” Karkat suggested, nodding towards the Hall of the Dead. “She might know something after examining the body.”

The trip to the Hall of the Dead wasn’t exceptionally helpful, as far as Karkat was concerned. Helgird mostly insinuated the two of them would end up here in a matter of time and made jokes about the dead not bothering her as often as the living did, as they knew how to keep their mouths shut. But she also mentioned that the cuts were made by embalming tools, the kind Nords typically used for their dead. It was a rather strange murder weapon, as far as Karkat was concerned, but he supposed it was to be expected when someone removed body parts after killing their victim. Still, it didn’t give them much to go off of, unless they searched every Nord’s house for embalming tools—not a very likely or doable investigation method.

"What now?" Karkat asked, a bit snide that they had already run out of things to investigate and people to interrogate. Surely now Terezi would have to abandon this idiotic mission and leave Windhelm. But just as soon as he’d said it, he noticed blood—blood a ways away from where Susanna’s body had been found. "There’s blood there," Karkat murmured, nudging her towards it, unsure if she’d be able to pick it up with her eyesight. Once they’d move to the blood there, Karkat spotted more, further off still, and even he had to admit, unless there was a great struggle, he couldn’t think why the blood would be so spread apart. "Do you think there’s a trail?" he asked, stepping towards the new blood he’d spotted. "It might lead somewhere."

“Well, let’s follow it then,” she basically demanded, pushing Karkat to lead the way for her.  They seemed to follow it for a while, tracking through the ‘actual’ houses of Windhelm until they hit one that seemed different from the others—with the blood trail ending there too. “This must be it then,” Terezi practically bounced, excited now that they had a real lead and a real house to look through. The house, predictably, was locked. “Does anyone live here?” She asked Karkat, tutting at his lack of knowledge. “Well I guess you’re about to find out, seeing as you’re the lockpicker.”

"Incredible," Karkat complained, pulling a pick from his bag and moving stepping towards the lock while he tried to recall who might’ve lived here—of course, he’d never really been to this part of town. It could’ve been any of the more wealthy Nords. "It’s never okay to be a criminal until you need one!" Carefully, he slid the lockpick in, fiddling with it for only a few seconds before it snapped, and he felt himself cringe at the critique he knew Terezi would be dishing out. He pulled another from the bag quickly, and it broke again just as easily. It quickly became evident that this lock was not as simple as the kinds he was used to picking, and if he had a chance at it, he’d have to work very slowly and very carefully.

Terezi refused to comment as Karkat picked up on her dubious morals, already more than aware of them herself. It wasn’t as if she was advocating the usage of lockpicking to steal, and there seemed to be a different agenda in trying to quietly make her way into the suspected house of a murderer—it was like the Aventus situation all over again. That said, it didn’t seem to really matter about the moral dilemma in the first place, seeing as the only thing she could hear was the tinkering snap of Karkat’s lockpicks.

It was also clear that it was getting late—the sun set fast in Windhelm and it was already getting chillier as the sun sank low in the sky. Karkat didn’t want to be out at night here; this place was dangerous enough as it was, let alone with a killer on the loose. He wanted to get them back to the inn as soon as possible, not about to risk Terezi’s safety over trying to catch the mysterious murderer in the abandoned-looking mansion with the essentially unpickable lock. “I can’t get it,” he admitted, turning away from the door with an annoyed shrug. “It’ll take a while if I keep trying and I’m just about out of picks. Might as well talk to Jorleif about the house—tomorrow. The Palace won’t be open to visitors this late. Let’s get a room at the inn.” He didn’t leave much up for discussion, though he knew Terezi would argue if she wanted to, and he started away from the house and towards the inn, pleading she would give in easily.

Eventually the Dunmer resigned himself from the task, and Terezi couldn’t say she was surprised. Maybe he seriously couldn’t pick anything, and his success with Aventus had been a fluke. It did well to remind herself that she’d only caught him in the first place because he’d struggled so badly with the jewellery stand. "Well that was embarrassing to listen to," she cringed as they began walking away, noting the lack of vision as Karkat pointed it out. "There really is nothing to do but eat, and definitely drink to forget I ever witnessed this,"  she teased, not annoyed with Karkat but more at herself for relying on him instead of going to Jorleif. Returning to the inn at a brisker pace now that the sun was setting, Terezi didn’t bother asking what Karkat wanted to eat, simply reciting the same order she’d given at Kynesgrove—replacing the pie with a Snowberry Crostata, thanks to the memories that Gamzee had left—before taking a seat with the failed lockpicker.

Karkat grumbled along as Terezi picked on him, well aware the consequences of fucking up in her presence, but seeing as he was secretly grateful they’d gotten away from the dark streets with a girl-killing murderer on the loose, he decided to deal with it. As it was, he’d never claimed to be a lockpicking expert, and to be honest, Terezi might not be terrible at it herself—but it was nice to pretend he had some use, even if it seemed lately it was just down to reading, and even that skill of his she hadn’t needed in a while. But there was always grinding up bugs and mushrooms for things she could have healed with magic, at least.

He had been willing to just sleep when they arrived back at Candlehearth Hall, but he wasn’t going to object to a meal. It surprised him when he didn’t even have to make a request—Terezi remembered from Kynesgrove what he wanted and ordered it right off the bat. He noticed she ordered nearly the same thing as well, although opting for a snowberry dish instead of a pie, probably scarred for life thanks to Gamzee. “So,” Karkat started, a bit unsure of himself but too curious to let it drop. “You like the way red things taste? Or the way the color red tastes or… something like that,” he faltered, confused at the strange concept the moment he started to try and decipher it.

Terezi tilted her head as Karkat addressed her, grin growing as it was obvious that he’d paid more attention to her—yet was still unable to pinpoint what it was exactly. She didn’t blame him, it wasn’t as if it was anything she’d come across with anyone else she’d ever met. ”It’s closer to the second,” she relented, drumming her fingers across the wood of the table. “I don’t really taste things: not like they should taste anyway. Everything just tastes of the same thing, depending on what colour it is.” At least talking about tasting and smelling didn’t clue him in any more on her sight, and confusing him even further was a delightful prospect.

"Like red is mostly snowberries, but snowberries has always been my favourite. White is clam chowder. And like I said before, Sollux’s tastes like red apples and jazbay grapes. Tavros tastes like beef!" She laughed, having already been over this with him. "I taste like beef too."

"Huh," Karkat murmured, still a bit confused with the concept but starting to grasp the basics of it at least. He still didn’t understand how she could associate colors and flavors to the point where looking at something worked out like tasting it—he was still stuck on her description of the vicious frost troll as ‘Mr. Clam Chowder’ while he knew well she hadn’t tried to eat the troll once they’d taken care of it. While it was possible she’d had a chance to taste Sollux and Tavros, he doubted she had—given especially that the flavors she described for Sollux were more related to his weird eye-color than anything else and he was fairly certain she hadn’t tasted those.

He felt like he was coming to more of an understanding now that he took some time to think about it, although it was strange that she referred to Sollux by eye-color, even if they were strange. He would’ve expected some boring gray food, like mudcrab legs before they’re cooked. Perhaps she mostly saw the strongest color, and translated it into taste? Trying to figure out her sight was getting to be a headache, at any right, and there were other things he was curious about. “So, basically you… kinda see in color? In flavor, I mean, like technically you could look at the snowberry crostata and taste it without… eating it? Is that right?” He paused a moment, wondering if maybe it was better not to ask but eventually giving in to his curiosity. “What do I taste like?” And as soon as he said it, he felt himself flush—regardless of how it might have sounded to Terezi, it brought back the memory from earlier today, and he hadn’t meant to imply that. Or bring it up again, or even slightly allude to it, and he worried she thought he was. “Not like—I mean, with… the seeing… tasting… thing.” Smooth recovery.

Terezi giggled at Karkat’s confusion, only subsiding when food was placed in front of her. She liked hearing people try to work her out, taking an egotistical pride in the attention—and the failure, too. “Taste and smell are pretty interchangeable: they’re both the same to me now,” she explained further, taking pity on Karkat’s attempt to rationalize it. “See, I should be completely blind—my eyes don’t work at all; however, I can see, of sorts. It’s like.. blocks of colours. I smell and taste colours and then translate them into objects and shapes in my head.” It was always difficult for Terezi to translate her vision to other people; although she understood and loved it herself, it didn’t always come across that way to everyone else. “So yeah, I can pretty much smell and taste the crostata without eating it.”

She frowned as Karkat began to stutter, completely missing the reference to earlier. It was only when he finished that she caught up, drawing blank with a response. How to respond was an issue that she thought over for a few seconds, aware that the two of them could end up walking on a fine line. “You taste like cobble. In the ground,” she decided on, being selectively honest. It was then that the conversation seemed to end, with Karkat turning to his food. Biting the inside of her lip as she pushed the spoon around her soup, Terezi sighed internally and continued talking. “I like your eyes though; they’re snowberries—it’s nice.”

Karkat looked up sharply when she referred to his eyes as snowberries, well aware that just a moment ago she’s stated that snowberries were her favorite taste, feeling himself flush slightly at the indication. After she’d called Sollux red apples he’d assumed he’d end up with something more along that line, not her favorite flavor ever, and for half a second he had to wonder if she’d said he tasted like cobble first in an effort to avoid the fact that he tasted like her favorite flavor. It was always possible he was reading too much into it as well, which was actually the most likely scenario, considering how quickly his whole relationship with Terezi had spiraled out of control.

There was a pause before Terezi realized how dumb that sounded, especially considering how the conversation had railed into it in the first place. “Like I could just squeeze them out of your skull and eat them: I’m sure if you popped them than tasty red juice would come out too,” she rectified.

Before he could get too invested in decoding the intricate cipher of Terezi’s words, she continued, and suddenly Karkat didn’t think her comment on snowberries was meant as a compliment or anything remotely sentimental or especially meaningful at all, rather, just more proof that the girl he was sadly developing feelings for was probably able to be diagnosed with multitudes of psychopathic disorders. “Like maybe my blood or something,” he replied, rolling his eyes at her and scooping up a spoonful of his horker stew. “How about you stick to actual snowberries? They’ve got more benefits than Dunmer eyes do anyway.”

"Hey, blood tastes pretty good too. I mean other people’s tastes better but if all I can get is my own then I guess I’ll have to take it," she sighed dramatically, taking a mouthful of her soup and smiling happily at the taste. It was comforting to have something warm to eat, especially with how cold Windhelm was. "And how do we even know that Dunmer eyes don’t have great properties? I think we should do experiments: being blind isn’t so bad, you’ll get used to it," she shrugged, eagerly spooning more soup in between teasing Karkat. "Not that I know what properties snowberries have, but I’m one hundred percent sure that they’re not any better than Dunmer eyes. They’re a delicacy in Cyrodiil, or something like that."

"Snowberries are actually really useful," Karkat immediately started, surprised that someone whose favorite food was snowberries didn’t know a single benefit of them. "Like, even that crostata still has some benefits, even though most of the use has been cooked out of them. But anyway, the main thing is that is protects against fire, which the crostata still helps with, actually. But it also protects against frost, so if you’re out in the cold, freezing to death, grab a snowberry. I mean, it won’t keep you alive forever, but it’ll help you last." He paused, taking another spoonful of the stew before it got cold. "To be honest, it protects against shock, too, so basically if you know you’re gonna fight a mage, a snowberry will help. Not, like, a ton, but if you make it into a potion, it can have some powerful defense. The last thing it does isn’t incredibly useful—to either of us, at least, it just makes enchanting easier so you can put stronger enchantments on things." He swirled the soup around his bowl, cornering a chunk of meat before he scooped it up. "Comparatively, at this point in history, if Dunmer eyes had alchemical usage, we would know about it by now. Human hearts and flesh, and Falmer ears all have uses in alchemy so it’s not like people are afraid of trying things. Point is," he paused, taking a bite of his soup as a pause to add some emphasis, "stick to actual snowberries, and not eyes that taste like them."

Terezi tried not to smirk too much as Karkat began listing off all the properties of snowberries, already expecting him to pick up on her comment. She simply listened patiently as he went through every single property, managing to make further progress on her soup. “Well I’m glad that it will stop us from freezing to death: that could have helped the first twenty times we came here,” she grinned, falling into something closer to sincere. Even if she was teasing Karkat, she had enjoyed listening to him ramble for a while. He certainly did sell himself short in regards to his talents. “So have you used human flesh in alchemy before?” She perked up, excited at the prospect. “C’mon list all the properties of rotting human meat for me too: let’s get this inn into the party mood with some light talking.”

He smiled at her question, though he was a bit unsure how serious she was about it, what with the whole psychopath thing, as it was. “I’ve never used human flesh in alchemy, no. It’s not exactly on the market often, and I don’t… want to gather it myself. Not to mention, you’d have to eat it? Maybe you’re fine with that but there’s certain things I don’t want to put in my mouth, even for the sake of alchemy. It mostly has negative effects though, like paralysis. It’s better for poisons,” he informed her, though he didn’t fill her in on every single usage as she was clearly teasing him when he’d only been trying to kindly teach her all her favorite food had to offer, like a true gentleman.

"Does it really have to be on the market often? Can’t you just kill someone and use their flesh; you’re not very resourceful," Terezi frowned, genuinely concerned for Karkat if he couldn’t properly forage for ingredients without having to pay for them. "Plus what’s wrong with eating it? It would probably taste nice to me, depending on the colour. Although that said, I don’t really want to be paralysed. How would any city get things done if I wasn’t around to solve crime and fight murderers?" She laughed, pushing her now empty bowl of soup away and instead opting for more wine.

Stopping to pour wine for herself and Karkat before pushing a cup towards him, Terezi made sure to keep her promise of drinking to Karkat’s misfortune with lockpicking. “So, I’ve divulged you into the world of my amazing senses, which only leaves me interested in yours. Why horker stew? It’s always looked a little too tough for my taste.”

When she asked about the stew, he hesitated, not sure he wanted to delve into that conversation when it seemed 90% of the stories of his past lead to Terezi teasing him about his poor orphan boy roots. Eventually, he shrugged, stirring the soup while he tried to work out where to go with it. “Uhhh, it is tough. But farming is hard out here, so good meat is expensive. Horkers are everywhere. The fisherman catch them and sell that as cheap meat, partly because it’s common and partly because, like you said, it’s really tough. Dunmer here don’t have big budgets, even when they’re leading rebellions out of their fucking basements. But uh, my mom used to make it; I’d help her with it sometimes. It’s pretty good aside from the meat, to be fair. But, I dunno, it reminds me of home in… like a good way, which I guess isn’t really how I usually think of home. I don’t know.” He shrugged again, eyes lowering as he paid his attention to his soup and started to stir it again.

Perhaps asking about the stew wasn’t a great idea, as all it did was just bring up more memories of Karkat’s late parents. Terezi frowned in return, wondering if there was anything she could ask about without upsetting the Dunmer. ”So, you can cook,” she instead noted, picking up on that fact he helped his mother—as well as the fact that his attention had turned downwards. “Well that’s great, because I never learned and as much as I like eating raw goat all the time, some variety would be nice—spicing it up a little with some foliage or something.”

"Can’t cook," he smiled, shaking his head and taking another spoonful of the soup. "But I was excellent at stirring things, or so I’m told. I was really bad at cutting things so she wouldn’t even let me do that, either. I got to grind things into a paste too, though, which was mostly just garlic and herbs that I’d then be allowed to stir into whatever she was making but, I have no idea how to actually… combine food ingredients and make them into something that tastes good. Probably part of why I took up alchemy; nothing has to taste good." He paused to swirl around his soup a moment, locating a piece of the tough meat and scooping it up. "Not that it would matter for you, I guess? Just have to make it colorful enough and you’d like it."

"You can’t cook, you can’t cut, you won’t even use human flesh for me in alchemy!" Terezi dramatically floundered, aware that the surrounding patrons weren’t enthused about their loud conversation concerning cannibalism. "But I guess your alchemy is palatable," Terezi hummed, absent-mindedly tracing her tongue over her bottom lip. At least the wine dulled the connotations of her action, instead reaching for the dessert she’d waited so long to taste. It was hard not to smile happily as she started eating it, enjoying the taste so much that she almost forgot that there was an ongoing conversation with Karkat too. "Exactly," she nodded, gesturing to her food. "You could put anything in here and I wouldn’t care as long as it was coated in snowberries: which isn’t a hint on how to poison me, by the way."

Karkat flinched as Terezi’s voice raised in volume, suddenly aware of the wine—wine she could probably drink easily, if all she tasted was the red color of it. He sunk a little lower when she spoke about his refusal to use human flesh for her, hoping no Nords were half-listening and assuming he did, in fact, use human flesh in his alchemy—his people didn’t need more issues with assumptions from ignorant humans. But she quickly distracted him from worrying at her comment on his alchemy, and he found himself watching closely while she ran her tongue over her bottom lip, feeling himself redden at the reminder, despite the fact he was fairly sure she genuinely did just mean his alchemy. And just as quickly, she was on to dessert, Karkat simply watching and rolling his eyes at her comment—as if either of them believed he’d be trying to kill her at this rate, dropping everything to save his captor from the Brotherhood like he had.

"Okay," Karkat sighed, getting to his feet and pushing in his chair as he did. "Let’s get some sleep," he told her, taking her wine glass away from her and sliding it along the table, out of her reach. "You can’t solve crimes without any sleep, can you?" he coaxed, though he glanced over his shoulder at the others in the inn, anxious that anyone here could be the culprit Terezi was looking for, and saying the wrong thing could put a bigger target on her head, worse already than she had simply for being a woman in a city with a serial killer after women. "C’mon, time to sleep."

Terezi frowned as she watched Karkat move the cup away from her, almost going to grab it again out of spite for someone telling her what she could or couldn’t do. “What is with you and your friends stopping me from eating the entirety of my dessert: although I suppose you didn’t put your hand in it so really I should be thanking your manners,” she drawled, scowling at Karkat and then back to her dessert. “Although at this point, it pretty much just tastes the same as the wine.”

"You’re fine," Karkat decided for her, gently sliding her plate away as well and tugging on her fork in an effort to take it from her. "You just said it all tastes the same anyway, you’re fine. We can get more another night and maybe you’ll be smart enough to eat it first. It’s time to sleep."

Terezi growled lowly as Karkat took her plate too, considering using the fork to stab his hand before he took that away from her too. She sighed dramatically in her seat, sitting back and weighing up the pros and cons of giving into Karkat. On the one hand, his patronizing behaviour was enough for her to stubbornly refuse to move—but on the other hand, the inn would get colder as the night wore on: three people in a huge room produced far less heat than two people in a smaller room. The idea of sleeping wasn’t overly appealing to Terezi, especially when it was back at the original place she’d been taken, without a large group to keep an eye on things. ”Besides, what’s the point in sleeping if the probability is that I’m just going to wake up somewhere else again?” She sidelined the wine that Karkat had basically taken from her, wanting something to hold or fiddle with to essentially hide behind.

It became clear what the issue—or at least part of the issue was once she spoke again, and Karkat softened at what was clearly some fear thanks to the treatment of the Brotherhood. “You’ll wake up where you go to sleep,” he assured her, considering giving her what he intended to be a comforting pat on the shoulder, but decided against it, hand clenching to a fist instead. “If it makes you feel better, we can stay at the Cornerclub instead; the Grey Quarter isn’t glamorous, or… safe, technically, but that’s from Nords, and, if you’re uncomfortable about what happened we could stay there. Either way, I’m not—nothing’s going to happen to you, Terezi. I’ll stay up and make sure, okay? How’s that?” he offered, deciding against his previous decision and lightly touching her shoulder for a moment. He expected she’d probably snap at him for touching on the issues and say something like she could take care of herself, maybe she didn’t need a petty thief looking after her but he supposed such remarks would almost be welcome—he didn’t like the idea of Terezi being afraid to sleep, even if he understood why, being in a place like this.

She froze up as Karkat offered assurances from her slip of the tongue, not wanting to get pity from her comment. “I’m fine,” she shrugged him off, finally standing to confirm her choice. “Let’s face it, they easily got past you the first time,” Terezi pointed out, making the statement objective instead of a dig or attack on Karkat. The idea of sleep really didn’t sit right with her, but it was stupid idea to stay up all night when she had plans and promises to keep to her investigations. Plus, she didn’t want some criminals to scare her into not sleeping—she was better than that. "C’mon, there’s no point in you staying awake and running yourself down," she resigned herself, going up to the innkeeper and paying for a room—this time settling on a double bed, although two singles would have been preferable. "I guess neither of us have to sleep on the floor," she shrugged, although the prospect of having another human a little closer while she slept was reassuring.

Karkat flinched at her comment, aware that he had messed up before, but he wasn’t going to make the mistake again. Still, it wasn’t as if he could explain it to her; he couldn’t say, losing her once had been enough and he didn’t intend to let it happen again, especially since he still didn’t understand what had gone wrong in his head to make him feel that way about the borderline psychotic Dragonborn who had taken him prisoner and technically speaking he was pretty sure he still wasn’t free to leave, and she still got to make all the choices about everything—regardless of not being able to understand what was wrong with him, he still knew he had wised up since then, and he wasn’t going to make the same mistake twice.

"I know they did," he muttered, following her to the room and closing the doors behind them, feeling a little more comfortable once they were at least a little further away from the people outside, all of which could potentially be the serial killer stalking the streets, even if at the end of the day, a few doors weren’t much. "They won’t again," and he wasn’t sure if he was saying it for her sake or his own, but he could pretend at least, it was for her. Protective issues aside, Karkat finally processed what she said about sleeping, squinting between the double bed and her for a moment while he tried to figure out exactly how he could have misheard her. “Neither of us have to sleep on the floor?” he repeated, sounding like a confused child who had missed the answer to a question. “There’s one bed,” he stated, raising an eyebrow at her like he needed her to spell it out—which he literally actually did.

"For the love of Satakal," she muttered at Karkat’s ignorance, having to keep her tolerance high against his inability to grasp any situation. "Two people can sleep on a double bed, yes?" She slowly explained, pointing at the bed and then the two of them. Granted, it wasn’t the biggest bed in the world, but she’d slept in smaller spaces with more people. "Just don’t do anything weird and it will be fine," she squinted, beginning to question how wise sleeping in a bed with Karkat actually was.

Leaving Karkat for a moment to make up his mind on whether he wanted to sleep two or twenty inches away from her, Terezi turned her attention to slipping Pyralspite off of her back and unsheathing him. She frowned at the blood that still coated it, fingers running over the blade and letting her mouth twitch at how blunt it was becoming—no wonder she’d had difficulty beheading the guy. “I guess I’m sticking to an iron sword for a while, or at least until we have a chance to pass by Whiterun,” she turned to Karkat, sheathing Pyralspite again. “So have you finally caught up with the concept of sharing a bed yet or do I have to give you more time?”

"I understand the concept of two people sharing a bed," he snapped at her, though there was no real sharpness behind his words. "Two… normal people sharing a bed,” he continued, shrugging and taking off the more uncomfortable pieces of his armor, as he didn’t have clothes to change into but now that the atmosphere was a little less hostile between them he was comfortable enough letting his guard down enough to actually go to sleep without having to wear metal bracers and clunky shoulder pads. He set his bow in a corner of the room along with his quiver, but held on to his daggers—if he was going to make good on his promise, he would likely need weapons and he was going to make good on his promise.

"Don’t you think it’s a little different in our case?" he asked, pressing the toes of his boots to his heel to easily kick them off. "I mean we’re not out in the tundra at risk of freezing to death, we’re just… a prisoner and their captor sharing a room together, right? So doesn’t it just make more sense to not share the bed?"

If he was being 100% honest with himself, he was opposed to the idea because of what had happened last time they’d slept close, in the tundras with Nepeta’s caravan. Just because he’d acknowledged having feelings for her didn’t mean he was going to do anything about it—or even wanted to, because it was just an idiotic idea to even humor. Feelings aside, or at least, somewhat aside, sharing a bed with Terezi would probably be warm and comfortable—perfect atmosphere to lull him to sleep, and as nice as that sounded—again, feelings aside—he was serious about staying up and making sure she was safe. To be honest, he wasn’t worried about the Dark Brotherhood anymore; not after she’d killed who he assumed had probably been a powerful member and likely weakened the entire group. Windhelm’s killer was still out there, and he didn’t know enough to know whether or not he only killed on the streets or he’d creep around inside to kill. Whether he had to lie by Terezi’s side or if he managed to talk himself out of it, he was going to stay up and make sure nothing happened.

Terezi remained impassive at, what she perceived as, Karkat’s tantrum over sharing a bed. It was rather curious to watch him criticize their relationship while shedding his armour in what was essentially a display of some trust. She simply raised an eyebrow as he carried on, absentmindedly also wanting to shed some armour, but more than aware that it had saved her life when she’d been kidnapped. Maybe if she made it through the night then changing into civilian clothing, especially if it would prove to be warmer than walking around with half her skin exposed.

She managed to even stay neutral when she brought up their relationship, having easily ignored that small factor in light of recent events. Were they truly captive and prisoner any more? She supposed that she still had control over Karkat in the sense that she dictated where she was going and Karkat was forced to come along, but he had autonomy in coming along in the first place. In all honesty, she wasn’t exactly sure that their relationship was so clear cut any more—but such thoughts were just for herself.

"Karkat," she pronounced sharply, not sure how much more of his strange logic she was supposed to sit through. "I’m not inviting you to have sex with me; there is more than enough room for us to sleep on opposite sides of the bed. I am trying to be accommodating and offer you somewhere comfortable. I’m sure we can always go back to the idea of tying you up with horses if it displeases you that much," she tutted, unused to dealing with people rejecting any gestures of kindness she attempted—mostly out of a lack of ever handing out such gestures in the first place.

Karkat was caught off-guard by her sudden crudeness, feeling his ears warm in embarrassment. “I didn’t think you were!” he weakly defended, falling quiet again when it was clear he was only embarrassing himself worse by complaining about it. He let out a heavy sigh, debating whether or not he should even bother to continue complaining or just give in and accept her demands. “I just don’t—” he sighed again, giving up before he could put in the effort to finish the sentence. Asking why Terezi even cared to try to be accommodating to him was probably dangerous; the Redguard wasn’t as cold and cruel as she’d appeared to him when they first met, but he had a feeling she wouldn’t like it if he brought it up or questioned it. “Fine,” he surrendered, swallowing nervously and directing his eyes towards the bed and not to Terezi.

With a final indignant sigh, he stepped towards the bed, sitting on the side closer to the door in hopes that if someone tried to come in to get to Terezi, they’d end up waking up Karkat as well, as he was sort of in the way. Things would be easier if he could hold her somehow—in Riften you learned what it felt like when someone tried to take something from you while you were sleeping and you learned to wake up. But, at the same time, he imagined it would be more difficult—distracting, even. It didn’t even matter, though; he would stay on his half of the bed and try to keep as close to the edge and as far from Terezi as he could, and then he’d be able to stay awake and make sure nothing happened, but obviously if he said that he still didn’t intend to sleep, she’d scold him. For the sake of looking like he was going to sleep, he shifted to gather the covers and pull them over himself, though only to his waist as he was still sitting up—lying down admittedly made him feel a bit vulnerable with their… strange relationship. “Let’s go to bed then,” he shrugged, only looking towards her for a moment before his eyes focused on the door.

Terezi cackled loudly at Karkat’s flustered reply, not about to waste a moment that could be spent laughing at his expense. Even if it looked like he’d given in for now, there still seemed to be something on the tip of his tongue, but whatever it was, he didn’t voice it—Terezi was intrigued, however pushing him any more would probably result in a lack of cooperation and she certainly wasn’t to backtrack on the progress she’d made on getting his whiny ass into a bed. “Well if you insist,” she winked in reply to his comment, laughing again at harmless discomfort she got to put him through. Deciding that bracers were fine to lose, Terezi shed them onto a nearby table, dropped her bag by them and also climbed into the bed. She took a moment to blankly regard Karkat, who was sat upright and looked like he wanted to do the opposite of sleep. “All right then,” she snorted, thoroughly amused as she lay down and turned her back on him.

As easy as it was to agree to sleep, Terezi found issue in actually accomplishing the task. She spent a while wide awake, vision watching the wall opposite as worries about the Brotherhood started to accumulate. At least Karkat was beside her, and having him closer to the door this time was reassuring. Had he chosen to sleep there because of that? Or was it simply better to know he was closer to the exit if Terezi pushed her teasing too far? Even then, he probably wouldn’t leave. Eventually, trying to work out Karkat’s behaviour became dominant to her thoughts—all but forgetting about the Brotherhood for the moment. It was from Karkat that her thoughts filtered into her own feelings towards him, still unsure what to do about it. As she began to wonder how healthy it was keep him around still—or even why she was anyway—the lull of sleep became far more enticing than it had been before. Sleeping didn’t guarantee that her thoughts would stay along the path of topics that didn’t include kidnapping and killing, and the deeper Terezi started to dream, the more apparent that came.

Every unknown sound could potentially be an enemy, and that was the trouble with sleeping in a popular inn in one of Skyrim’s biggest hold capitals—even when all the rooms were filled, the building was still bustling with business, people at the bar asking for drinks all through the night and the floor above creaked with locals and tourists like warming up by the fire and sharing their stories. It wasn’t loud enough that it would potentially keep guests up, really, but Karkat was very focused on his task making sure no murderers—serial killers from within the walls or assassins of the Brotherhood alike, tried to harm the Dragonborn while she slept. He tensed every time he heard footsteps down the hall, watching the doorknob very carefully for any indication someone was going to trespass in their room—but even while every foreign step down the hall went passed and faded out, Karkat didn’t let down his guard.

Terezi managed to capture Karkat’s attention and finally steal it away from listening to the rest of the inn. Her face was contorted from the peaceful expression most people took on when they slept, and her jostling about gave Karkat a pretty good idea what was wrong with her, assuming she was likely having a nightmare. Still, even if he was fairly sure of what was happening to her, he didn’t know what he was meant to do about it; was it appropriate for him to try to comfort her? Not to mention, he was only guessing it was a nightmare. It wasn’t impossible that sometimes she just slept a bit more restlessly than normal, even if a bad dream did make more sense given their location in the same inn she’d been kidnapped in. But if he was wrong, he imagined she wouldn’t like being woken up over nothing…

Before he could continue his internal debate over what the appropriate step to take was, the Redguard moved closer to him, making Karkat himself tense up, uncertain what she was doing and what she would do if she woke up in her current position. Having lifted his arm a bit once she’d rolled into him, he hesitated, considering letting it rest on her body, unsure where to put his own arm now that she’d sort of invaded his personal space. What he did notice while he debated, was once she’d wrapped her arm around him, her sleeping had grown less restless—she was still making some noise but not mumbling how she had been, and his ears felt hot when he thought about the fact that, even unconsciously, she’d found comfort in him. Smiling, he let his arm relax, gingerly draping it across her shoulders before he turned his gaze back towards the door, finally ready to pay attention again to the task he’d assigned himself for the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> we are both really busy right now so updates will probably be delayed and such until things settle down!!   
> school and work suck


	17. windhelm iii

Terezi woke up slowly from sleep, still wanting to go back to it after how long she’d spent almost waking up and moving around. It hadn’t exactly felt like a restful sleep, and she was certainly warmer and comfortable than she’d been on most other mornings. It was when she groaned and buried her face into the warmth that she realised something was off about the source—it certainly wasn’t a mattress and it wasn’t a pillow either. With her heart starting to pick up from panic, Terezi inched back enough to work out what she was sleeping on top of. Her stomach flipped uncomfortably when she realized it was Karkat, unsure how long she’d been asleep for and, more importantly, how long she’d been curled up to him. At least there was saving grace in the pressure on her shoulder, which indicated that Karkat had at least put up with it for the night. 

With her mind reeling a mile an hour, she quickly tried to come up with a way to play the situation off. Obviously, it looked like she was the one who was at fault—even if Karkat hadn’t pushed her off, he wasn’t really actively doing anything. Even now, he didn’t seem to have reacted, which put Terezi in half a mind just to fall back asleep and damn the position of it. Still, she had a job to do and going back to sleep on a man she had dubious intentions with didn’t seem the best way to get it done. This meant she had to go with the alternative; if there was one thing Terezi was good at, it was pushing her own awkwardness onto other people. “Well this is certainly a different way that two people can share a bed,” she managed to articulate, although it was slightly undermined by the tiredness in her voice from just waking up.

Drowsy from forcing himself to stay up all night, Karkat didn’t notice Terezi had awoken until she spoke up, mistaking her previous movement for more sleepy tossing and turning, but once she did spoke, he jolted, the drowsiness essentially being startled out of him. “That’s—” he stammered, unsure how to justify the position they’d woken up in even when he hadn’t been the one who’d initiated it. “It’s not my fault,” he managed, pulling his arm away from her hastily as if that would make up for the fact that it had been there at all. “You’re the—” he cut himself off, huffing angrily at the fact that he apparently cared more about sparing Terezi her pride than protecting his own—anyway, surely she already knew she’d been having nightmares, it wasn’t like telling her she had been would change anything, aside from make it obvious he knew and embarrass her. That just sounded like it would end up being worse for him, and the last thing he wanted was to put a wedge in their relationship again; the back and forth with her was giving him whiplash and even if this wasn’t exactly the ideal place on the spectrum for their relationship, it was better than it had been. 

"Sorry," he mumbled, sliding off the bed and away from her and regrettably, her warmth—one thing never changed in Windhelm, and that was how cold everything always was. In truth, it had been nice to share the bed with her last night, and having to get up and go back into the snow and ice so they could search for a murderer wasn’t something he was looking forward to in the least. Grumbling to himself, he moved about the room, recollecting his armor and weapons he’d shed the night before and hastily re-equipping them. He glanced back at Terezi, feeling himself flush again just at the embarrassing wake-up she’d had, still kicking himself for not paying more attention and managing to disentangle himself from her before she’d woken. In an effort to spare himself further embarrassment, he resigned to just grabbing what he couldn’t quickly put back on and stepped outside the bedroom, letting out an exhausted sigh and putting his armor back on in the hallway.

Terezi breathed out heavily as Karkat left the room, curling into herself and taking comfort in the blanket. Now that he was gone, she could feel a blush creep onto her face as she tried to make sense of what had just happened. Her relationship with him seemed to go from one extreme to the other: forever intense at loathing or a stupid glimmer of infatuation. It was ridiculous to keep toying with the idea of him like that—she’d kidnapped Karkat and that was the end of things. Even if there were times when they got on well, they weren’t friends and it was probable that Karkat was simply being patient out of fear for acting any other way. She ran her finger across her bottom lip from the temptation to draw upon a different memory, noting that the wound had pretty much cleared. Still, even if she told herself she was checking out of precaution, her thoughts instantly moved to memories of something else pressing against her.

Everything was an internal debate about where she stood with Karkat, or how she felt about him. The logical solution was just to be straight with him, but that itself would be impossible. She’d have to admit to the fact that she didn’t see him as a petty criminal any more—betraying herself, her mother and essentially leaving no ties to Karkat. Why would he stick around if she had no use for him? But then, she couldn’t even work out why he’d stuck around in the first place. Sure he’d put up resistance about kissing her, but not a lot—almost as if it was for the sake of it. He hadn’t really put up much resistance from her using him as a security blanket either. The increasing awareness of how badly she’d fucked both their current lives over was almost too much to think about. There was little point dealing with it when there was still work to do.

Pulling herself out of the bed and pinching herself for her idiocy, Terezi at least took the opportunity to put on something warmer. Sure, she’d probably look more out of place and draw the Nord’s attention, but denying her heritage’s clothing for the sake of the their dumb sensibility was not on the agenda. After switching everything around in her bag, at least Terezi could be pleased with the fact her shoulder blades were covered. Shrugging Pyralspite back on, she hesitated before opening the door; facing Karkat was suddenly harder, meaning there was more pressure to put up a façade. 

"Back to Jorleif it is!" Came the jolly announcement as she joined Karkat again—avoiding looking at him for too long as she occupied herself with the tasks that the day had to bring.

When Terezi emerged from the bedroom, it was as if their awkward exchange hadn’t occurred at all, her voice loud and eager to get back to solving the murder. He had no idea how she could do that—just push away embarrassment and act like nothing had happened, but he certainly wasn’t going to drudge it back up now that she’d managed to get rid of it. Sighing in exhaustion, mostly for the sake of it, Karkat pushed himself off the wall and nodded for her to follow, making their way back out of the inn and back into the cold. He smirked and looked back at her, only noticing the outfit change once they’d stepped into the cold and he realized what had brought it on. “If it’s too cold for you here, we can always leave you know,” but he knew she wouldn’t accept, even to get out of the chilling winds. There was a murder to be solved, a criminal to be put away, and justice to be brought, and tragically, there was no way she was going to pass that up.

Karkat led her through the streets to the Palace of Kings, falling back to trail behind her once they’d entered the courtyard and hesitating half a second at the threshold, nearly flinching at Ulfric’s booming voice, audible the instant one stepped through the doors. But they weren’t here for that, he reminded himself, and the sooner they finished this fool’s errand, the sooner they could go. Jorleif wasn’t as helpful as he would have liked—though he did inform them that the house they’d followed the blood trail to was called Hjerim, which had previously belonged to Friga Shatter-Shield, one of the girls who had lost their lives during the recent string of killings. Naturally, he didn’t have a key to the house, merely suggesting they talk to Friga’s mother, Tova, which didn’t sound like the best idea to the Dunmer, but if it was that or picking it himself, it might be their only option. Once the steward was through being mostly useless, Karkat led the Dragonborn back outside, into the cold but away from the Jarl’s unending rant about whatever he was even talking about anymore. Regardless of what Jorleif had told them, Karkat still didn’t like where their path was headed, glancing over his shoulder at the Redguard for some direction. “Can we just give up now? You’re not really gonna go hassle Tova Shatter-Shield for her daughter’s house keys, are you?”

"Of course I am," Terezi frowned, disliking the way Karkat phrased his sentence. It was apparent that he didn’t want to be involved with her investigations, but his constant interjections were frustrating. "I don’t think it’s hassling if it’s going to prevent any more deaths like her daughter’s—and besides, it’s probably a good thing you couldn’t pick the lock. Isn’t it more respectful to inform her of our intentions, now that we know it’s her dead daughter’s house?" Deciding that it was probably best to stop Karkat’s habit of unnecessary comments before meeting with a grieving women, Terezi made sure to make his options clear before continuing. "You know you don’t have to be here; rather than deterring me every five minutes there is always the wonderful option of staying in the inn where I don’t have to hear you whine every ten minutes."

For all Karkat was happy to make comments, he didn’t seem happy to go back to the inn either, leaving Terezi exasperated with how exactly she was supposed to appease the Dunmer while carrying on with her investigation. Having to finally shrug off his picky attitude, Terezi focused on finding Tova Shatter-Shield—finally catching her at the marketplace. It was difficult to press on with the questions that needed to be asked when Tova was obviously still grieving, but taking a passive and understanding approach seemed to yield some results. Tova didn’t seem sure of what Terezi wanted with the house, which wasn’t encouraging for the investigation. Still, she was handed the key and departed with even more determination to solve the mystery.

Entering Hjerim was far easier with a key, and the excitement of finally having access was too much for Terezi to pretend otherwise. Still, she was a professional and there was no point being outwardly disrespectful. The house was dark and musty on the inside, definitely in need of some repairs. “I can barely see anything,” Terezi grumbled, unsurprised by the lack of lighting but still hindered by it. Still, she could make out a chest against the wall, surrounded by broken barrels and wood. Wary to keep alert in case they weren’t alone, Terezi made her way over to the chest and opened it with ease. She wasn’t sure what to make of its contents—paper and a book. Curiously, she picked them out: able to recognize that they looked the same but unable to read what they said. Picking out a piece of paper and the book, she pushed them towards Karkat. “What does it say?”

Delicately, Karkat took the paper Terezi offered, frowning at it and glancing at the heap of them gathered where she’d found the one. “Beware the Butcher,” he read, eyes narrowing in confusion. “The killer who haunts the streets of Windhelm. These calamitous times bring out the worst in people--don’t become the next victim. See Viola Giordano if you spot any suspicious behavior.” He looked back down at the pile, double checking to be sure they were all the same. “Every single paper in here says the same thing, they all just say ‘beware the butcher.’”

He took the book from her as well, running his fingers along the binding before he unclasped the cover, flipping through the pages to see how far the writing spanned before he fell back to the first page. “The plans are coming together swimmingly. I’ve found good sources of bone, flesh, and blood, but thus far a good sampling of sinew and marrow have escaped me. No matter. The city is swollen with contemptuous fools who will be missed by nobody,” he paused, looking up at Terezi with concern for what he was reading, finally starting to take solving the murders a bit more seriously—though he still would have preferred to just get out of Windhelm and leave all this behind. “Last night was almost able to corner Susanna as she left Candlehearth. Idiot guards showed up at just the wrong moment and I had to turn about, just out for a stroll, and so forth. There will be other chances, but the time is drawing near. I think back to my time in Winterhold. All the wasted minds up in their towers. They only explore the magic they already know. I am discovering new magic here. Something deeper than the cantripped shenanigans of fire and light. This flesh magic is older than us. Perhaps older than the world itself. I am tugging at the corners of the fabrics of the universe, and where it bunches and folds is where I shall create my greatest triumph. One more attempt at the Candlehearth girl. She’s proving to be a bit too cautious, but those strong joints of hers should contain the most exquisite tendons. Worth the effort. Tonight.” He fell quiet, flipped through the pages again in search of more information, but the few remaining pages were blank. “That’s all it says, there’s nothing else,” he muttered to her, half glad he didn’t have to read any more of that and half distressed they had nothing else to go off of. “Do you think—I mean it sounds like he’s collecting… body parts from the girl’s he’s killed, and the blood trail led here, so…” he fell silent, feeling a little nauseous at the idea he was leading up to, and he looked to Terezi for guidance, hoping she had come to the same conclusion he had.

Terezi thought carefully over her reply before responding to Karkat, unsure how he’d react to the discovery she was sure he knew they were going to find. “Possibly,” she settled on, briefly looking around for any other indications of what they should expect. Pursing her lips when it seemed there was nothing in the immediate area, Terezi nudged Karkat towards the back of the house. “It’s always reassuring to know that your body type matches the kind that a serial murder is looking for,” she idly remarked, her tone sarcastic as they stepped into a smaller room. There seemed to be a bit more going on there, with wardrobes and tables filled with assorted items. Investigating the first wardrobe only yielded gold and clothes, all of which she left with little interest.

Moving on around the room, she noted the small table full of paper. It was annoying to know that an awareness campaign had spread through the town and that Jorleif hadn’t thought to mention it, but she was becoming accustomed to his inefficiency. Flicking through the leaflets with disinterest, Terezi’s fingers caught on something cold and metallic. Pushing the papers out of the way, she pulled the offending item out from in-between them, noting that it appeared to be a necklace. Holding it towards a source of light didn’t really help her identify what was hanging from the necklace. “What’s this?” She frowned, passing the blurred necklace to Karkat so that he could give her a better idea of what it looked like.

Karkat took the necklace she offered, fingers shaking slightly as the reality of the house and the killer was starting to sink in, and before he even looked at the amulet, he let his eyes sweep over the premises again, paranoid the butcher was lurking behind a corner, or even just that they might enter the house again while the two of them were in there. When he didn’t spot any movement again, he let out a shaky sigh, eyes dropping to the necklace and sliding his fingers along it to feel the grooves. “It’s an amulet—I don’t, um, I don’t know what it means. It’s not the amulet of any of the Divines. Doesn’t look like any specific Daedra either, it’s kind of greenish… might be made of jade? But it’s carved into the shape of a skull,” he murmured, looking up at the Redguard uncertainly before he flipped it over to see if there might be anything helpful on the back, though as predicted, it was just plain metal. “There’s a guy who lives sort of near the Aretino place who might know what this thing means, he’s like an expert on weird artifacts, so he mi—”

As he looked it over, her attention changed to the second wardrobe—noticing that it took up less bulk than the previous. Opening it proved useless: there was nothing in it. Adamant that a wardrobe shouldn’t have been protruding from a wall, Terezi tapped the back of it—mostly unsurprised when it came back hollow. “And what’s this?” If there was going to be anywhere a serial killer would stash dead body parts, a secret room behind a wardrobe seemed a safe place. While Terezi was sure that she could handle whatever she was about to be faced with, but she wasn’t so sure about her companion. “You don’t have to follow me in,” she turned to him, holding out her hand for the necklace to be given back. “I’m sure we’re alone here; you don’t have to see it, Karkat.”

He hadn’t noticed Terezi continue exploring, but once she’d got the wardrobe to open, the sound of it made him start, heart nearly leaping out of his throat when the sudden noise brought him to other conclusions. “No, I’m going with you,” he rebutted, against all his better judgement. Regardless of how much he didn’t want to see what was behind that door, it was possibly—likely, even, that the murderer could be hiding behind the door. It could lead to a secret cellar like Delphine’s secret wardrobe back in Riverwood, and he wasn’t going to let her explore a dark cellar that likely belonged to a serial killer, where she wouldn’t be able to even really see what was going on or if someone moved to hurt her. “We don’t—we don’t know where that leads,” he muttered, passing the amulet back to her and trying to keep his fingers steady—not that it wasn’t already obvious to her that he was afraid. “I’ll be fine, it’s fine, let’s just—” he paused, swallowing hard and glancing across the dark room again just in case something had changed since the last time he’d took a sweeping look at it, “let’s just go in.”

"Okay," Terezi nodded, already preparing to have to pay more attention to Karkat than the house. It didn’t seem like he was handling things well at all, but every nudge for him to leave hadn’t worked and it only seemed to encourage him to stick around longer. "Just stay close and let the mighty Pyrope protect you," she tried to smile reassuringly, face dropping as she turned away from him and continued pushing the back of the wardrobe. It seemed to slot into place easily, and Terezi held her breath for the few seconds it took to fully reveal the next room.

"Well shit," she hissed between her teeth, able to pick out the defining features of the room with help of the candlelight. There were very obvious bones and flesh littering the floor, most probably the only thing left of the bodies that had been mutilated. Swallowing down the repulsion that flared up, Terezi stepped into the room fully—noting it was the last room in the house, and the smallest at that. At least being blind granted her some small mercies—she couldn’t see the bodies properly, nor could she smell the rotting or the death. The collection of bones seemed to be far larger than the number of victims that Terezi had been aware of, prompting further questions about just how long this man had been killing, or how long it had taken for someone to finally notice. 

With the initial shock of the room over, Terezi was able to take in more of the room and, more specifically, the alive members occupying it. Karkat looked even worse upon entering, and it had probably been a stupid call to allow his stubbornness to overtake his well-being. “Are you okay?” She turned to him, question answered when she realized he was breathless and shaking. Gently squeezing his shoulder in an effort to support and comfort him, Terezi decided to hurry up with things so that they could leave. ”Don’t move from here; I’m only going to inspect the altar and then we’re leaving,” she whispered, worried that speaking too loudly would startle Karkat further, but also hyper-aware that this was the last resting place of too many girls to count. There was an overwhelming pressure to treat them with as much respect as possible, while still investigating thoroughly. 

Avoiding treading on the remains of the girls was an awkward task in itself, but it was impossible to send Karkat in her place with the state he was in. Moving slowly, she managed to avoid touching anything—but it left her rather too close to the fresher parts of the arrangement. Grimacing as she turned away from the rotting skull, Terezi tried to make sense of what was in-front of her. ”Daedric, maybe,” she muttered to herself as she examined the altar, but there was no indication of any other books or ingredients that were commonly associated with such worship and practice. “Maybe not,” she sighed, able to pick out markings underneath the arrangement that didn’t match up with her limited knowledge of Daedric cults. Despite that, she did notice another book—but refrained from making her discovery public yet: the first book had been vile enough and there would be time for Karkat to read it when he was more settled. 

Speaking of which, she carefully headed back to the Dunmer, attention once again fixed on how well he was taking things—which if she was honest, was a better distraction than concentrating on the mutilated mess around them. ”C’mon,” she nudged him, frowning when he didn’t look like any huge improvements had been made to his psyche. Taking his hand into hers, Terezi squeezed it reassuringly as she led him back out of the house—preferably for the first and last time. 

Karkat couldn’t complain at being taken out of the house—sure, it was embarrassing how blatantly obvious it was that the state of the room had made him feel sick, and he felt a bit guilty for freezing up and leaving the blind girl to handle everything, but the stench of the body parts had made him feel dizzy, and even outside in the fresh air he could still feel the sense of death looming over him, making his limbs heavy. Terezi’s hand in his was a comfort, despite the tinge of shame he felt at needing to be looked after when he’d been trying to look after her. Being outside was slowly making him feel steady, if not from the support from Terezi’s grip, and once he felt a bit more sure of himself, he lightly pulled his hand away, trying not to seem ungrateful for her support as he did without outwardly thanking her for essentially taking care of him. “Was there anything in there?” he asked, taking a few steps away from Hjerim in an effort to get them a little further from what must have been the murderer’s secret base. 

He frowned when she hesitated, but when she passed him a second journal he realized she had only done so to make sure he was ready after what had happened inside, and he steeled his resolve to just read whatever was in the journal without getting queasy and worrying her over his own stupid issues. “Okay, um. 17 tendons and assorted ligaments, 173 fragments of bone or assemblage, approx. 4 bucket-fulls of blood (Nord preferred), 6 spoons of marrow (no more than 2 from a thigh), 12 yards of flesh (before cutting),” easier said than done, apparently, his stomach turning as he read off what must have been a recipe for a human being. “Star-scrying to the edge of the ice-mind, look to the lights where the souls dance, revealing the time when a spark will revive when the rotted united under most skillful hands.” He scanned over a note of translation that he didn’t think was important enough to bother reading before glancing towards the Redguard, running his tongue over dry lips.

"So, the butcher’s a necromancer," he concluded, suppressing a shiver of discomfort at the idea of necromancy, and glancing back down to the book. The final page made his skin crawl, simply staring at it for a moment before he read it out. "The last page just says, ‘soon,’" he told her, closing the book and tightening his fingers around it, trying to keep his discomfort hidden from her. "What should we do, do we go see that Viola lady or, did you want to see what we can learn about the amulet from the guy who lives near the Aretino place? I guess we could just take what we learned to Jorleif but I doubt he’d know what to do with it either." Biting his lip, he looked back to Terezi, knowing her decision was the final one in the end.

Terezi breathed out with frustration as Karkat confirmed where her thinking had been going. Maybe things would have been easier if she was dealing with a cannibal or something along those lines, but necromancy always hit too close to home. “A sloppy necromancer,” she corrected him, at least knowing enough about the subject to get some idea of what was going on. “I don’t think they’re a proper necromancer. They’re usually like,” she paused to think about where exactly she was going with it, before deciding that talking about Aradia was pointless. “Nevermind. The point is that it basically doesn’t narrow anyone down.”

She turned her attention back to the amulet, feeling the weight of it against her skin as she weighed up all the different options that Karkat had presented. It was crucial that they did whatever was time-efficient while still receiving results. Viola didn’t seem to know much, considering there were still murders going on and all she’d done was build up the hype. Jorleif was near-useless, only ever re-directing them to someone else. “But necromancy is always associated with skulls,” she commented, thoughts already directed down the path they were going to take. “Shall we go get this appraised?”

Letting Karkat focus on directing them to where they needed to go gave Terezi some small time to check on him again—an action she seemed to be repeating a lot over the course of the day. While he didn’t seem 100%, there was an improvement from beforehand, which seemed to be the best they were going to get. She was introduced to Calixto Corrium, slightly distracted by everything his museum had to offer but without the necessary time to tour it. He had an explanation for the amulet, pointing them in the direction of Wuunferth the Unliving—a court mage known for necromancy. She politely declined Calixto’s offer to buy the amulet, frowning slightly at his eagerness to buy her evidence. 

"So," she began as they exited, looking to Karkat for his opinion. "Wuunferth the Unliving is known for necromancy; it would have helped if you’d mentioned that earlier," she sighed, but didn’t push her annoyance too far. In contrast to her words, she was actually excited again—they’d basically captured the murderer, all they had to do now was report it.

"I didn’t know he was known for necromancy," Karkat grumbled in reply, following her through the streets of the city while still trying to remain on guard—just because they knew who the butcher was now, didn’t mean he couldn’t still strike. "I haven’t lived here in years, might I remind you, and as a kid I wasn’t too hung up on what the palace-dwellers were doing when it didn’t concern the Gray Quarter." He was glad this whole thing was over with, though still surprised it had come together so easily once they’d found the amulet. He certainly hadn’t expected the trinket to become decisive evidence for the case—or for there to even be decisive evidence, assuming they’d have to carefully piece this together, but at the end of the day, he was glad it was over, they could turn in the criminal and then get out of this terrible city and, Divines willing, never have to come back to it.

Again, Ulfric’s voice greeted them as soon as they entered the Palace of Kings, loud and booming from some room down the hall, as if he was never sat in his throne. At the very least, he was nearly becoming immune to the headache the voice brought on. He trailed behind Terezi through the castle, curiously glancing about and wondering where the court mage might even be, curious as to how someone got in and out of the palace every couple of nights to kill without the guards noticing. As soon as they made it to Jorleif, Terezi started to inform the steward what they’d learned, showing off the amulet Calixto had appraised for them as proof, and the steward was swayed considerably easily—apparently even the people who shared a home with him didn’t trust the mage, which wasn’t a good sign in his favor. The guards immediately headed to his chambers to take away to Windhelm’s icy keep, and Jorleif congratulated Terezi on Ulfric and the city’s behalf, generally ignoring Karkat’s presence altogether.

It was almost refreshing to leave the palace, knowing it was the last time he’d have to be in the building for at least a long while, and even if the unease of being in Windhelm hadn’t faded, he didn’t feel quite as jumpy or alert as he had been the last couple of days. “Well, you solved the case, detective,” he teased, suppressing the swell of what might, maybe have been pride in her for her determination to save the city, even if a good chunk of them weren’t extremely worthy of being saved. “Can we leave Windhelm forever now and never come back, please?” he asked, hoping she either wouldn’t notice how low the sun hung in the sky, or wouldn’t care. Surely they could make it to Kynesgrove before the sun set, and there was an inn there they could stay at so they could get out of this place more immediately.

Feeling more than accomplished with solving the day’s murder, Terezi easily laughed off Karkat’s teasing and prodding with a genuine enjoyment for his company—something that seemed to have fluctuated dramatically until recently. “We can leave tomorrow; I want to eat like the High King of Skyrim!” She grinned, leading the two of them back to the inn, placing an order of whatever Karkat wanted, her precious snowberry crostata and another healthy bottle of the reddest wine. The wine came before the cooked food, and Terezi made sure to pour Karkat a cup before she even started on her own—if there was one thing a drink was good for, it was forgetting the day had ever happened.

"How are you holding up?" She asked, for what must have been the hundredth time that day. There was some relief that he was doing well, unsure if she’d really be able to say the same in his position. She knew that idly, in the back of her mind, she was aware that such disregard of the human body had her thinking of her mother—another reason to drink freely. Then again, hadn’t Karkat’s father undergone the same death? Maybe he would hold up better than most, she mused. Admittedly, she was privately impressed with how he’d handled it anyway; if it wasn’t for her own strange vision, then she doubted how well she could have stood in a room that smelt of death—especially when such a smell reminded her of her family.

"Well, here’s to us—the natural born detective and the detective who would rather be at home," she giggled, tipping her cup in the direction of Karkat and giggling louder as he did the same. The two fell back into their ‘normal’ banter for a while, uninterrupted until Terezi noticed someone walking towards them with the usual ‘I been looking for you. Got something I’m supposed to deliver. Your hands only’ shtick. She took the letter with curiosity, bewildered as to why someone was writing to her. The reasoning soon became apparent with the two letters scrawled on the front, Terezi’s eyebrows almost joining together as she stared at it in puzzlement. "He’s not due to write me," she explained to Karkat as she handed the unopened letter to him. 

Naturally, before he could get too comfortable with the idea of dinner and then sleep, a courier found his way to them, and Karkat didn’t expect it to be a big deal, confused at first but quickly realizing it was the same person who’d written them earlier, just before he’d received the scar on his neck. From what she’d explained, it seemed like Dave wrote letters to her for the sake of it, and from what he’d read, they were primarily meaningless jabber due to the fact that Terezi couldn’t read them anyway—that in mind, he wasn’t sure what had he so puzzled over this one, but when she handed it to him, he quickly unfolded it and let his eyes scan over the words.

"Um," he paused, running his tongue over his lips and glancing between the Redguard and the letter while he tried to word things delicately, not wanting the contents of the letter to put her off. "Well, to start, he knows you’re the Dragonborn. I don’t know if it’s just… the uh, the tone of how he writes, or speaks, even, but it kind of sounds like he’s annoyed you didn’t tell him. Like he says, ‘I forget to tell you about what I ate for lunch, or how hot the forge is; these small details slip through everyone’s mind, it’s cool, whatever.’”

Even if informing her that her former boyfriend was maybe mad at her seemed challenging, tackling the remainder of the letter was a little harder—granted, what Dave was even trying to say had confused him at first but once he’d understood what he was saying, he didn’t think it was the sort of thing Terezi needed to hear when she was finally getting her confidence back. “Also, um. He said Rose is upset with you, because of…” he floundered, eventually just sort of gesturing to himself with a shrug. “He said it’s pretty important you don’t kill me, because… Kanaya… Although he’s calling Kanaya my mom and he’s calling me his nephew and having never met the guy I have to say it’s kind of creepy,” he added, hoping to lighten the mood a bit after casually informing Terezi that one of the people who had frightened her most on their journey was still leaning towards killing her.

"To be fair, it seems like someone, somewhere along the line didn’t tell him why you captured me in the first place, he called me an innocent civilian. So, um, we might want to clear that up. When—oh, he wants you to go to Whiterun. His plan is to have John put a bounty on your head which I would think would deter you from going back but," Karkat sighed, giving a one shouldered shrug and folding the note up to slide towards Terezi. "So I’m guessing we’re heading to Whiterun first thing tomorrow morning?" he asked, half eager to get out of the city but not entirely looking forward to meeting Terezi’s ex-boyfriend, especially considering his sneaking suspicion that she still had feelings for him. He hadn’t been to Whiterun in a long time himself, and he wasn’t entirely sure he wanted to go back, either. But, he was a prisoner in the end, and he didn’t get much say in where they went—but he doubted Terezi was going to say no to Dave when the boy had written her what Karkat imagined was about as sincere as a letter from him could ever get.

"He breaks up with me because he can’t handle the apparent danger I put myself in, then gets upset when I don’t mention said danger to him anymore," she sighed dramatically, a lot more agitated than she was trying to let on. Terezi sulked with her drink for a while as she thought the letter over, even more agitated that Rose had gone to Dave, although it sounded like Kanaya had been the main factor. It was rather underhanded for the two of them to go to Dave—or smart, depending on who you were—because there was no way that Terezi could refuse his request for her to return, even if it was just so that Dave could appease Rose. "Yeah, we’re heading there," she finally relented, a mixture of excited and apprehensive about their next destination.

Karkat fell silent when she spoke a bit more personally of her relationship with Dave, eyes drifting down to his food while he tried to figure out something to say to help—but he didn’t know Dave at all, so he couldn’t make an assumptions on his part if he had no idea what his personality was like. The only thing he really knew about Dave was that he was an idiot—because of the way he wrote, and because of no other reason, obviously, he reminded himself, looking towards Terezi and feeling a pang of guilt that he didn’t know what to say to bring back her good mood. He took some comfort in the fact at least, that mentioning Kanaya wanted to kill her still hadn’t seemed to have any negative affects—she hadn’t even really commented on it, which, once he thought about it, only made the Dave thing worse, if she was so hung up what what he’d said that she didn’t even care about the vampire.

Thinking of Rose ended up with her thoughts back on necromancy, amusing herself with the thought that there was something the two of them could talk about! But then again, maybe not—Rose had been so distinct from the guy they’d apprehended. It was then that she started to think more about the book, making comparisons to Rose and Aradia that were slowly starting to change her thought process. ”What kind of mage practices ancient necromancy?” She scoffed, but her eyebrows started to come together the more she thought about it. “I mean, surely you’d just stick to conjuration? How is a Court Mage who is known for practicing necromancy even in that position in Windhelm? That’s almost impossible,” she continued, fingers lightly tapping the table as she tried to think about it more.

"So what if it really was impossible? No one else around here seems to know about him practising necromancy—apart from that guy. Come to think of it," she slowly spoke, fingers stopping their rhythm. "Why was that guy so interested in buying the amulet off of me? I mean I get that he’s running a museum full of ancient—" It was then that something else clicked into place, having already used that word once in her line of thought. "He was at the first murder too," she suddenly spoke, trying to collect all the pieces that would make her new theory fit—in a hope that Karkat would pass them off and reassure her that they caught the right guy. "I guess if you own a museum full of ancient artifacts you might stumble across an ancient guide to necromancy along with an ancient amulet that goes with the ritual. You might leave this behind at the scene of the crime and pass it off onto the Court Mage when it’s found. You might then use that opportunity to continue killing."

So focused on trying to decode Terezi’s emotions and piece together how to make her feel better, he missed the first bit of what she said, eyebrows drawing together when she was suddenly talking about the court mage and wondering what on earth he’d missed between the two subjects. He nearly interjected that she was just being paranoid, but she didn’t give him a chance—once she started to cotton on, he didn’t notice even a pause to take a breath as she connected bits and pieces of evidence. More than anything, he wanted to be able to say ‘no, Terezi, you’re being paranoid—we found the amulet, it belongs to the mage, we solved the mystery and Windhelm is safe,’ but what she was saying was making… some sense. “You know,” he started, speaking a little softer with the weight of the discovery they were looming over, “I’m not sure how Wuunferth would even be able to get out of the palace—there’s guards posted all hours of the night, if he went out at night and every night he went out someone turned up dead, I… I don’t know how he could avoid raising suspicion. And… only Calixto linked the amulet to Wuunferth, we went entirely off of his word—” he swallowed nervously, looking up towards Terezi in hopes that they’d both remember some bit of evidence that would condemn Wuunferth again, they could both laugh and say how silly they’d been for forgetting that, of course they’d caught the right man and saved Windhelm. “You don’t think it’s Wuunferth anymore, do you?”


	18. windhelm iv

"No: I don’t," she conceded, anger flaring up in her stomach at how stupid she’d been to get so caught up in wrapping up the case that she hadn’t actually solved the crime at all. She all but slammed her cup back onto the table, huffing out a breath as she looked at the patrons around them. Once again, time was of the essence in the challenge to come up with a way to catch him and prevent another murder. They had no evidence, and although they’d taken Terezi at her word about Wuunferth, she was sure that admitting she’d made a mistake and asking them to put another random man in his place wasn’t going to appease anyone. Unsure how to deal with her sudden anger, Terezi left the table wordlessly and headed outside—hoping that she’d be able to think clearer in the cold. She tried to ignore Karkat’s immediate presence for a moment, calming down as she tried to put things into perspective. She was most concerned that another murder would strike, meaning that her incompetence would be the reason of another innocent girl’s death. That was enough to spurn her into action, desperately racking her brain for any way that she could put herself in their place, before realizing that she already had the solution.

Her sudden anger startled Karkat, jumping when she slammed the cup back on the table and grimacing as the other patrons in the bar all turned to look at what was causing the ruckus. Then she was up and out of her seat and outside, without a word, and Karkat hurried after her, shrinking slightly under the gaze from everyone else in the inn. The cold night air of Windhelm hit him hard upon exiting, the cold waking up him some, but not enough—his eyelids were practically burning at this point. Terezi still seemed livid, and he opened his mouth to calm her, but he didn’t know of anything he could say that would, and if he said something stupid she’d only yell at him and get angrier. All he could really do was wait for her to cool down, crossing his arms over his chest for warmth while he waited on her. Occasionally, he glanced down the dark streets for any sign of anyone else, especially the someone that more likely than not, was their killer. He just had to wait for her to relax, and then she would propose something rational to resolve this—and almost immediately, she was speaking, the Dunmer perking up slightly to listen to her plan.

"Okay, I’m going to make this right—but there’s no way that they’ll take Calixto based on me admitting I fucked up. We’re going to need actual evidence." Sighing, Terezi made sure to look around before continuing—wary of who might have been lurking and listening. "It’s just about night, right? I’m a stranger to the city—all I have to do is walk around looking lost until he shows up. I’ll let him get a few hits on me and then take him down and hand him over to the guards. It’ll be easy, and it means that if anyone’s getting hurt, it’s me: someone who has spent the last six years fighting men who murder and rape. It’ll be easy, just tedious."

Karkat pieced together what she was proposing very slowly, like his head was refusing the idea to the point where it slowed down his processing speed. But then she was talking about fighting him, and that if anyone got hurt it’d be her. “No,” he shook his head, feeling the fear that had kept him alert the whole of their trip here creep back over him. “No, no—it’s too dangerous, we’re not—” his hands were on her shoulders, he didn’t remember reaching for her, and once he realized, he took a breath to steady himself, releasing her and letting his arms fall. “It’s too risky,” he continued, a bit calmer in his demeanor now, though still fervent in his words. “It, it doesn’t make sense,” he continued, knowing full well it did actually make sense, but any sort of argument he had, he was going to try. “I mean… there’s got to be… something else we can do. What if we mess up? It’s dark, you can’t see well in the dark. What if you don’t get the chance to fight back, what if he just—” he shrugged, flailing for something that would give Terezi reason to try another method, although her own self-preservation didn’t seem to factor in very high, and he was starting to understand what Terezi had said about Dave and the apparent danger she always put herself in. “There’s got to be something else we can do, Terezi.” The words came out a bit more desperate than he’d intended, but it didn’t matter—at this point he knew he couldn’t change her mind.

Terezi startled slightly as Karkat grabbed her shoulders, hands awkwardly hovering in mid-air as her brain tried to process what was happening. As soon as she was up to speed, he let go of her—missing the contact when she was aware it had gone. Breathing out now that Karkat had stepped back, Terezi tried to pay more attention to what he was saying. Apparently her idea hadn’t boded well with him, as he was vehemently trying to talk her out of it. “I can’t see well in the dark, but I can hear and smell and sense,” she bit back, unhappy that he’d used her disability as a reason against it. “Being blind hasn’t got me killed yet, thank you very much.” Getting totally worked up because Karkat had pulled the blind card wasn’t going to get either of them far, and she took a few moments to compose herself before she accidentally started a fight with the wrong person.

"There is nothing else," she clearly told him, keeping her voice calmer than how it had been. "I’m not going back inside knowing that it’s my fault that someone else could be killed. This way I’m acting as a decoy and we’ll get the evidence too. There is nothing more perfect than this, especially considering that I know I can fight him," she persisted, unwilling to budge on the matter. Karkat could easily dissociate with her if he didn’t like the plan: she’d do it with or without his help. "I’m expecting him: I’ll hear him and I’ll stop him before he manages to do any real damage. It’s not as if he’s killing his victims quickly or precisely—I’d be able to heal any almost-fatal wound by the time I’d apprehended him. And if I’ve screwed up again and Calixto is innocent, then this will just be a waste of a night—nothing more and nothing less."

The nervousness and fear that had been plaguing Karkat since they learned of the butcher was ebbing significantly with every word Terezi spoke—not because he trusted her not to get hurt, sadly, but because it was being replaced with frustration and anger, and when he spoke again it was very different from the soft, shaky voice he’d been using a minute ago. “What kind of logic is that, of course he’s killing them quickly—they’d scream and alert the whole city if he just started slicing them up with the embalming tools, obviously he does all that once they’re already dead. If they’re struggling, he’d risk damaging what he needs from them. He’s not going to come up to you and shove you and slice your arm open to get at the bones he needs—he’s going to come up behind you, stab you, or, or slit your throat, and then he’s going to take what he needs from you and leave your corpse in the street. I mean, these women could see, and I’m sure they could hear too, even if the smelling thing isn’t really—and they all knew a serial killer was roaming the streets. I’m sure every woman who leaves the house at night is aware of the danger and thinks to herself, I’ll be fine. I’ll hear him coming, I’ll see him, if anything happens I can defend myself—but they’re all dead now,” he paused, aware that he was being harsh but hopeful that maybe his harshness would make her realize how dangerous this was.

"I mean, Susanna—there was no sign of a struggle. Every wound on her was from embalming tools, she didn’t have any bruises or small cuts she might get from fighting off someone with a dagger. That’s not what a struggle looks like, Terezi, a struggle is bruises, and cuts, and scrapes, broken bones—" Karkat fell silent for a moment, running his tongue over his lips and sighing in frustration towards both himself and Terezi. "Look, the point is, this guy knows what he’s doing. You saw how many bodies there were—I’m not saying you’re not strong, you’re not smart, you’re not experienced, you’re not capable—but it’s possible a lot of those girls were strong, smart, experienced, and capable, too. This just isn’t a good idea. We could go to his house tomorrow, one of us could ask for a tour of the museum and the other could snoop around—I’ll ask for the tour, actually, it doesn’t make sense for him to drag you off somewhere—but we might be able to find something in his house to incriminate him without actively risking your life, doesn’t that make more sense? We don’t have to use you as bait to catch this guy, we just need the right information, and I don’t think it’ll be impossible to get it. Why can’t we just try it?" he pleaded, willing her to see some reason and try things the way that was less likely to get her killed.

It probably wasn’t fair at all to say that Terezi was a patient woman when she felt that she was being personally insulted, let alone when she was being patronized. The longer that Karkat kept speaking, the hotter she could feel her face becoming from the growing anger that she’d only just managed to shake off. It was disturbing how volatile their relationship could become, with Terezi’s good mood from earlier almost obliterated by how sour things were becoming. “There were no signs of struggling? So there was no sign that her neck had been slit from behind? You’re painting a pretty convincing picture here,” Terezi snarled in response, stepping towards Karkat in a hostile manner. It wasn’t that she was moving to attack him but rather, she was moving to protect herself. Terezi dealt terribly with criticism, the very thought of being wrong had her ears burning hot and a million reasons why she wasn’t. Making herself physically bigger was, a rather poor, attempt to make up for the vulnerabilities that she mentally felt. “He must have been pretty great if one of the witnesses heard her scream, so yeah—he’s killing them real quietly,” she hissed lowly, angered sarcasm dripping thickly from her words.

In all honestly—a concept that was so far off the table that it might have well have not existed at that point in time—Karkat’s plan was logical, and it would probably work. However, that would involving waiting another night, which was something they couldn’t afford. “Because trying that gives a free night where we’re not doing anything—where we’re risking someone else dying instead. Did you not pay attention to that part either? I’m not going to save my own ass to put someone else in danger.” Terezi made sure to put careful emphasis into her words, almost puncturing the air with them. Protecting herself meant nothing if she had to live with the guilt of causing someone else’s death. Sadly, it took great restraint to stop herself from pushing things with Karkat any further. She took a step back from him and breathed out heavily, hands curled up at her sides. “If you don’t like it, then go somewhere else, Karkat.”

Arguing with her was senseless—that was coming across loud and clear as she only got more defensive of Karkat trying to keep her from potentially sacrificing herself over this whole thing, and it was exhausting trying to reason with her. At the end of the day, he was sure the only way she’d give in was to certainties, and he couldn’t promise the butcher wouldn’t kill tonight, even if it might’ve been unlikely—it wasn’t as if he killed every single day was easy enough to say, but there was no way he could prove he wouldn’t, and therefore there was no way she would agree to wait. Regardless, Terezi’s heroism was infuriating—this case had never been her responsibility to solve and the fact she was now willing to risk her safety for it wore him out and frustrated him. Even aside from his own personal feelings regarding Terezi’s well-being, she was still the Dragonborn, and cruel as it sounded, her life was worth more than anyone in Windhelm’s life—anyone in Skyrim’s, to be frank. But he knew better than to tell her that, and better than to argue at all. Regardless, his eyes narrowed to slits when she told him to leave, almost annoyed that she was so blind to that fact that he cared enough about her to stick around, but at the same time, he wasn’t exactly allowed to be offended about that, because he wasn’t supposed to care. “I can’t leave, Terezi, I’m your prisoner and I might run off if you let me out of your sight. Smell. Whatever—I’m not going—”

He fell silent as he heard a door click close, nervously glancing towards the inn to see if someone had only just left; they hadn’t, and there hadn’t been anyone else outside to have gone inside instead, meaning the door he heard couldn’t possibly have been Candlehearth’s. He could almost feel his spine shiver as he put two and two together—the only house close enough to Candlehearth that they’d be able to hear from where they were was just around the corner—Calixto’s House of Curiosities, and there was no good reason anyone would be arriving there at this hour. Anger dissipated instantly, nerves taking its place again as he looked at Terezi, hoping she realized what he’d realized. “Be careful,” he muttered, taking a step away from her, knowing full well he had to be out of sight by the time Calixto rounded the corner. “Don’t get cocky, don’t—don’t get hurt,” he trailed off, giving Terezi one last look before falling to a crouch and slinking into the shadows, putting some distance between them. The further away he got, the more anxious he felt, but at the same time he was aware that it had to be done—if Calixto caught on, he would avoid them and Terezi wouldn’t get her proof. All he could do was keep his fingers on his hilt and pray Terezi was right about being able to take care of herself.

It was probably best for Karkat and Terezi that they were disturbed, as Karkat’s last comment almost pushed Terezi into saying some things that she might have regretted saying. There was a fine line that the two of them walked, and bringing up their relationship of captive and captor was enough to have her on the defensive as she reminded that she was supposed to hate Karkat, nothing more. However, there was little time to dwell on that, as Karkat was mumbling words that she didn’t pay attention to—only focused on how far away Calixto was. It seemed as if her plan had to come into motion too quickly, barely having enough time to push Pyralspite under the cover of her clothing’s cape—hoping that it was hidden by the darkness that had fallen. Checking that Karkat was gone, and ignoring the mix of feelings that swirled when she knew he was, Terezi let her shoulders and head drop; it was probably best to make herself look smaller and weaker than she actually was.

There was too much light in the area outside of Candlehearth and she’d noted guards by the gate’s entrance earlier, so it seemed their patrol stayed around the densely populated areas. If there was anywhere he wouldn’t attack her, it was where she was stood. Ears pricking up to make sure he was following, Terezi slightly picked up her pace now that she had somewhere to go in mind, heading towards the part of the city with less lighting. She could hear her footsteps being echoed by Calixto’s, wondering how long she’d have to walk before he decided to strike. He’d probably feel safer closer to Hjerim, so Terezi headed towards the marketplace to get there. She’d only been there once in the day, and at that point she hadn’t paid any attention to how well lit the forge was. It was only as she entered it at night that a problem quickly became apparent as she was blinded by the contrast of the flames against the darkness of the rest of the market. Having to pause in her step, Terezi’s assumption of how far Calixto was behind her seemed to be off—especially so when she sensed someone reaching behind her.

She managed to shout the first half of an expletive before his hand was over her mouth, keeping her muffled as she struggled to unsheathe the smaller sword at her side. She could feel a blade against her neck, and managed to sharply jam her shoulder up against his wrist so that it sliced against her jaw line instead—hardly painless but a hell of a lot easier to heal than an artery. Cheap tricks only worked once, and the intensity of the fire next to her made it impossible to know which way would be an escape; essentially, she’d trapped herself. Panic started to mix with the adrenaline as she struggled with Calixto, hands too busy trying block the knife from slicing her throat to be able to reach her weapon in time.

The market place provided some light, which made things a bit easier for Karkat—but not Terezi, and he tensed as he saw her hesitate, narrowing his eyes as he tried to figure out if she was waiting for Calixto intentionally or if the fire had messed with her vision and she couldn’t see—and then Calixto grabbed her, and it was plainly evident that this wasn’t part of the plan; there was no way Terezi would have tried to cry out if this was all going according to plan, and in a panic, Karkat moved. He didn’t trust Calixto to be sane enough to regard his own self-preservation over killing Terezi, so he didn’t think coming up behind him with a dagger to his own throat would stop him—it was too risky to think he might kill her anyway, so Karkat simply grabbed for his right arm, thankful the cloak of darkness had kept Calixto unaware of his presence until he’d touched him. Sliding his own arm under Calixto’s did make it easier to pull the dagger away from Terezi’s throat—the problem was that Karkat wasn’t strong enough to wrestle with the Imperial, and Calixto, now in a frenzy as he realized the danger he was in, seemed just as willing to shed Karkat’s blood as he had to been to shed Terezi’s. At the very least, he’d managed to get the blade away from Terezi’s neck, even if it had backfired a bit—neither of them had really considered how strong Calixto might be, and keeping his knife away took all of Karkat’s strength, leaving him unable to reach for his own.

The pressure on Terezi’s throat and arms suddenly released itself as Calixto moved away from her, confusion and anticipation of a heavier attack outweighing any relief she may have felt. She wasn’t stupid enough to stay there, moving back against the wall of the market to get a better look of what was happening. She could make out Calixto struggling with someone else, and small flashes of snowberry confirmed that it was obviously Karkat—and he wasn’t the one coming out on top. With her body free again, she managed to grab her iron sword without trouble, lunging towards Calixto and managing to push her weight into forcing the metal through the flesh next to his shoulder.

She had the advantage now, almost matched in weight and height and having incapacitated his arm enough to stop it trying to kill Karkat. She could pull him away from the Dunmer then, pushing him up against the wall and hissing as his knife penetrated the fabric of her clothes and found purchase on her skin. Everything but the pain seemed to ebb away as she pulled the sword up to throat, unable to spare the time to hesitate as she slit it. The man managed to get another slice on her before it dropped out of his hand—his blood messily spilling onto her clothes as he died. She didn’t waste time waiting for it, instantly moving back away from his body and hearing the noise as he crumpled to the floor.

The dirty gray and clam chowder of the ground started to mix with snowberries—a mix that was a little too close to being her own fate. Still on a high from the adrenaline, Terezi wasted no time in checking he was dead before quickly examining his clothes for any other indication of what had happened. Sadly there was nothing, but she had the mind to take his key while it was available—it would probably be best to investigate his house for further clues so the two of them weren’t suddenly charged with random murder. Finished with looking over the man’s dead body, Terezi breathed out heavily with relief. The adrenaline slowly ebbed away as she took the situation in, increasingly aware of the pain from his wounds as she tried to ignore the uneasiness she felt. She finally swallowed down her breathlessness, turning to Karkat to look over his body. “You okay?” She asked, fingers messily spreading her blood with Calixto’s as she began to heal the wound on her jaw with shaking hands.

Karkat flinched as Terezi killed the man, shivering as he watched the blood pour from his neck. He knew that was the right thing to do—even if they didn’t have proof he’d tried to kill the other girls beyond logical thinking, he had still tried to kill Terezi, and it was scary to think he might have succeeded. What if Karkat had walked away when she’d told him to go, would she have been more composed when he struck, or would he have retained the upperhand with no one to assist her? Granted, Karkat hadn’t done much aside from free Terezi up from his grasp, and it was a miracle he wasn’t more wounded considering how useless he’d been, but the most damage he could feel was from struggling and only felt like bruising at most. “I’m okay,” he murmured, finally tearing his eyes away from the pool of blood forming around the man.

He moved a bit closer to Terezi, red eyes nervously scanning over her body for wounds and noting some blood—but fortunately none of them looked life-threatening, only painful. “Sorry I couldn’t get over quicker,” he sighed, watching as she began to heal the wound on her jaw. “It was hard to keep out of sight while I followed someone who was also being followed—are you okay?” he managed, trying not to trail off into criticizing himself and focus on what was more important. “Looks like it hurts,” Karkat gestured, touching his own jaw to mimic where her own wound was.

It was a little difficult to talk to her—he was relieved that she was okay, and that they’d both made it out alive and taken care of the killer, but it didn’t make the things they’d said—mostly the things he said—go away, and it was possible Terezi had already forgotten them due to the drama, but he hadn’t, and even if it was possible, it was more likely she hadn’t forgotten as well. “Did you find anything on him?” he asked, having noticed her check his body—it was likely he might have some embalming tools on him, or perhaps some clues that would confirm 100% that he was the butcher, because as it stood, they had no real way to prove his identity. He had tried to kill Terezi, but Karkat had been the only witness, and not only was he a Dunmer who probably weren’t allowed opinions of killings within the city, he’d also entered the city with Terezi and it was clear his allegiance lay with her, therefore making his witness testimony a bit biased. “We might have to search his house for something, you know. I don’t… I don’t know if this is enough.”

Terezi was far too distracted by what had just happened to concentrate on why she was supposed to be mad at Karkat, instead finding gratitude in the fact that he was fine. She threw a one-sided smile at him as he motioned to his jaw, the pain slowly trickling away as she progressed. ”All I got was a key,” Terezi sighed, flinching as her frustration at the lack of evidence affected her magic—still as fluctuating as ever with her abilities. “No soul gems or ingredients, but I kind of already figured he wasn’t into the contemporary arts.” Letting her hand move from her jaw to her thigh, Terezi turned the key over in her hand and let her vision flicker back over to the dead body next to them.

"Unless we find something in his house, then the next assumption is that he was killing and Wuunferth was doing the necromancy part—maybe in exchange for some rare artifact?" Coming up with a new theory was slightly harder, especially when she wasn’t sure if had completely recovered from what had just happened. "Ugh. Okay that’s kind of dumb but it’s that or we’re the ones getting arrested: so let’s just go for now, we can get a guard later," she sighed, having to put up with his blood on her clothes for a while longer.

Luckily the walk to Calixto’s was short in comparison to the other journeys they’d been taking around Windhelm—but it still seemed too long to Terezi. She stayed closer to Karkat this time, almost hovering next to him as she scanned the area. There was nothing to fear now that they’d caught the killer, but the earlier encounter had made Terezi suspicious of everything and everyone. The museum was easily opened with a key, and it was certainly filled with all sorts of items that she hadn’t paid attention to on their first visit. Terezi had no idea where to start—although she did side-line some embalming tools that were on display. ”I would imagine you’ll search quicker than me,” she half-heartedly joked, trying not to appear as nervous as she was in the house.

A quick glance around the museum at night had a chill running up Karkat’s spine, though he was unsure if it was because the place was creepy in general, or because he knew a murderer was living here and calmly holding tours of weird artifacts during the day. He noticed the embalming tools on display as well, grateful for them at least—most people didn’t just happen to own embalming tools and even if these display ones looked clean, it didn’t mean he didn’t happen to have more—obviously he knew where to get them. “That’s a good sign,” Karkat muttered, gesturing towards the tools in case she hadn’t spotted them. “Not exactly decisive evidence but, most people don’t just have those lying around, at least.”

He took the key from when she suggested he search, nodding and glancing around for something else the key might open, for chests that might contain useful clues. “I won’t go far,” he told her, offering a faint smile in an effort to make her feel better after her close encounter, and started snooping around the chests, wardrobes and end tables around the house. Unfortunately, nothing he was finding suggested ‘mass murdering criminal,’ mostly being some gold coins, clothing, typical household furnishings, and more junk he must’ve found in his youth that wasn’t deemed good enough for his House of Curiosities.

Frustrated with coming up flat, Karkat turned to Terezi, but when he did, he noticed something he hadn’t seen before—a staircase, so close to the door that most people probably wouldn’t even notice it upon coming inside. It didn’t even lead to a full second floor, probably just designed for storage, but it could be exactly the storage they were looking for, and he quickly ascended the creaky stairs to fight a locked chest at the top of the landing, taking a breath and hoping he’d find something incriminating once he turned the lock.

Maybe not the best thing to wish for—the chest was filled with every different type of embalming tool known to man, probably, and they weren’t clean—rust and dried blood coated several of them and made Karkat feel a little dizzy. “I found his tools—they have blood on them,” he called down the steps, squinting as he picked out the one thing in the chest that wasn’t used a murder weapon. “And another book.” Journal in hand, he headed back down the steps before he opened the journal to read out to her, glancing nervously towards her before he started.

"Soon enough, my sweet Lucilla, you will be with me again. Normally when such words are written it is because the love left behind is soon to depart, but in my case, I hope to soon bring your spirit back into my world, for it was you who loved this world so much, not I. I continue to collect your new form from the ragged bits around Windhelm," Karkat paused, hands shaking as they suddenly learned his motive—that he was literally taking the perfect pieces of the girls around the city to combine into a new body for this Lucilla, and the notion of it made Karkat feel sick. "If—if they only knew what destiny would soon grace their bodies, with your spirit imbuing them with higher purpose, they would surely thank me for the great gift I give them. I reserve for them a place of beauty alongside your heart. The day draws near. Soon I will hold you. And I will show you this and it will be as delivering a long-forgotten letter to a weary traveler. Love always, Calixto." He took a deep breath, glancing towards Terezi again. "Well, this… is pretty damning. And by the way, Lucilla was his sister. Just for the record. For the sake of making this journal entry sound a little more uncomfortable than it already did."

Terezi raised her eyebrows as Karkat got further and further through the journal, unsure if love was really a safe human emotion if people would do that for their girlfriends. It was only when Karkat clarified their relationship that Terezi grimaced, glad the case was over already. “Let’s just hand this into a guard and forget this ever happened,” she sighed, taking the journal from Karkat and collating it with all the evidence they’d found. Luckily the guards patrolled in circles, making it easy to pull one aside and admit to Calixto’s killing, hastily passing the evidence on to avoid a night in the prison.

Finally solving the murder didn’t feel so great the second time round, all Terezi wanted to do was sleep and try to ignore the phantom feeling that there was still a knife against her throat. As soon as they had a room she dumped her belongings on the floor and started looking for her armour—the sooner she was in her own clothes, the better. She didn’t even bother drawing out the fun in changing in-front of Karkat, simply stating her intentions and having little care in whether he was watching or not—although she doubted he’d be able to do anything but look away. She felt a little safer back in her armour, although it was colder and slightly less comfortable. Double checking that her sword was in easy reach, Terezi finally decided that she’d done enough to warrant sleeping.

It was only when she got into the bed that she realized just how exhausting the day had been, eyelids feeling heavier and body losing its tension. Still, her mind weighed heavier with the fight she’d ended up causing with Karkat, all the way through to the struggle with Calixto and the discovery at her house. She rolled a little closer to him—enough to be just in the middle of the bed, but not touching. Maybe it was okay to admit that she’d been a little too defensive over their argument, especially now that Karkat had been sort of right—which she still didn’t like, but couldn’t do anything about. The fact he’d helped her was like a fact that burnt, leaving her uncomfortable in her gratitude but unable to express it so bluntly. Unconsciously, or maybe even consciously, she moved closer again—just far enough that she was almost touching him.

It was close enough that she could feel the warmth he radiated in comparison to the rest of the room, and her thoughts drifted between how he’d been there to help her, again, and how he’d called her out on their assumed relationship of captor and captive. Her gut twisted uncomfortably at the thought, body also moving around until she sighed and gave up—resting her forehead against Karkat’s shoulder. He didn’t seem to react, which was neither a good thing nor a bad thing. Maybe it didn’t matter so much: it was just better to take his comfort as it was instead of questioning it. Still, it wasn’t quite right to be so near to him while their last personal words had been so cold. She fidgeted around again, acting on impulse as she took his hand into hers. There was a brief moment of awkwardness where she froze—unsure if Karkat would pull back like every other time, which would only make the situation even worse. She hesitated long enough to be reassured that he wasn’t pulling back, lightly breathing out against his arm and burying her face further there.

"I’m sorry," she mumbled, chest tight with the embarrassment of having to admit she was in the wrong. The only thing she got in return was Karkat’s reply of his own apologies, but that was enough for her. He was probably just as confused as she was—but that was okay too. He was warm and safe, and they were both alive and she was more than sure that she liked him—despite how often they argued or disagreed. He was intelligent and sharp, annoyingly stuck in a denial of self-worth but caring and committed. Maybe the arguing was even okay if it meant reasons to fall asleep curled next to him with his hand in hers, which was how she eventually slipped out of consciousness for the night.


	19. whiterun i

The only bad thing about leaving Windhelm was having to wake up—after staying awake so long, all Karkat wanted to do was sleep. To Terezi’s credit though, it did seem like she’d let him sleep a lot longer than normal. Groggy from exhaustion, Karkat didn’t speak much, and once they got on the carriage to Whiterun, he was asleep again in a matter of moments, thankful Terezi let him go back to sleep without commenting on how lazy he was being. In any other circumstance, a carriage ride took forever, but Whiterun arrived too soon, and he was forced to wake up again; at least this time, though he certainly could sleep more, he did feel a bit more rested.

Regardless of how much sleep he’d gotten, this hadn’t been a trip he’d been entirely thrilled to take. He had no interest in meeting Dave, for a multitude of reasons that he was going to pretend was just one reason, and that one reason was that he didn’t want to get involved in whatever drama was between them, simply because drama was messy and nothing more. Maybe, possibly, he also didn’t want Terezi to be upset, which wasn’t definite but it was certainly possible after the letter Dave had sent. He also wasn’t entirely looking forward to have to basically tell someone he was a thief for the sake of clearing Terezi’s reputation a little, but all of those reasons were still better than any other reason he might have had but definitely didn’t exist, like what if they still had chemistry and they still both liked each other and they flirted and… things that definitely wouldn’t bother him, basically.

Dave and all he brought with him aside, Karkat had his own reasons he didn’t want to come back to Whiterun, and they were surprisingly similar to the reason Terezi had brought them here in the first place. It was full of history for both of them, but while Terezi knew, for the most part where she stood with Dave, Karkat wasn’t so sure about his own stance, and it made him a bit more anxious than he already was at the promise of meeting the only man Terezi had ever loved. “So,” he started, glancing around the bustling city for familiar faces, “Would we just head up to Dragonsreach or...? Where would Dave even be?”

"Dragonsreach, or Jorrvaskr—but they’re all on the same route so I’m sure we’ll find him," Terezi reassured, certainly more excited now that they were in Whiterun. Her stomach flipped at the sites she could recognize, starting to wonder just how tall Dave had gotten—could she beat him in a fight now? She hurried Karkat through the streets with her, all but forgetting the actual reason that Dave had wanted to meet up with her again. It was easy enough to spot him at Jorrvaskr once they were close enough, hair contrasting against his skin just as it always had done.

"Ah, here comes trouble," Dave smirked when he noticed her, not anticipating the blur of Redguard that ended up screeching his name and clinging to his neck, but managing to catch it regardless. After swinging her around in a fashion that was for the intention of irony—not at all because he’d missed the horror—he put her back on the ground, noticing that Karkat and Jade had embraced too. He tried to ignore whatever John was doing in the background, eyes scanning over Terezi to see what had changed. "Well you finally got some meat on you; the cannibals are gonna be flocking now."

Having pleased Terezi with enough of a compliment to allow his attention to turn to someone else, Dave fully took in the Dunmer in front of him too. ”And my nephew is still alive; good job TZ.” He threw her a thumbs up before turning back to the Dunmer. ”Dave Strider; Housecarl to John, Son of Balgruuf the Greater—and former mother to Terezi Pyrope,” he offered, shaking Karkat’s hand in the firm manner that his brother had always taught him—none of that flopping around like dying wheat. ”I know you know who these two are, but Terezi has yet to meet Jade,” he nodded between the two girls, impassive when Terezi began sizing up Jade instantly—he couldn’t wait for her to work out what was going on there. Another five minutes and he’d be the one under interrogation. “I guess I haven’t actually told you much about Jade but you’ll get on fine, seeing as every woman in my life is only happy when she’s joining forces with another to make me miserable.”

"So little man," Dave turned to Karkat, trying to recall how old Jade had said he was. Surely an acceptable age of dating was two years younger, and Jade was two years younger than him—was it plausible that Karkat was fourteen? He had the height and weight, and it would explain why Rose had been so adamant to get him away from Terezi. "We’ve got a lot of catching up to do. I hear you’re my nephew or some shit. That’s fantastic; I’ve always wanted my darling twin sister to have a child of her own at eighteen. I’m so glad you inherited the family nose. And ears. And glowing red eyes. And look at that, the Redguard race suits you so well."

They’d found Dave without much trouble, but the fact that Terezi suggested Jorrvaskr as a place to look for him had worried Karkat, up until he heard “Didn’t expect you to show your face around here again!” and nearly cringed until he caught sight of her face, relieved to see a smile and recognize she was only teasing. And just like that Jade was bounding towards him, throwing her arms around him and giving him a squeeze so hard he worried he would snap—he’d forgotten how strong the Nord was. “Hi Karkat,” she giggled into his ear once they were close, and Karkat replied with a smile and a “hi Jade,” back. The girl pulled herself away from Karkat once Dave started the introduction, smiling politely when Dave introduced her to this Terezi, despite having been told that Terezi had apparently taken Karkat hostage or something like that… he didn’t exactly look like her prisoner though, so she wasn’t too sure about the story, but she supposed they’d see as time went on.

Dave and Karkat’s exchange didn’t catch too much of Terezi’s attention—that was already focused on Jade. The girl was obviously a Nord, fair skinned with blonde hair—a stark contrast in comparison to Terezi. The girl also had a couple of inches on her too, which was always annoying. However, she didn’t seem too bad either, and Terezi smiled back as they were introduced. John hadn’t changed too much either, she could still pick out his features and was happy enough that she was at least taller than 66% of the males.

Meanwhile, Karkat’s attention had fallen to Dave, slightly intimidated by the size of him—he’d thought of Terezi as tall and muscular, but Dave was taller and muscular-er than Terezi still, and if that had been her type before—that didn’t even make sense, did blind people even have appearance based types? Appearances aside, Dave’s personality seemed a stark contrast to his own anyway, talking to him as if they were family who hadn’t seen each other in a long time. “I don’t know where you heard that from but I’m not your nephew or some shit, Kanaya’s not my mother, and anyway is Rose even married to Kanaya? I think you’re pretty far from being my uncle; might wanna wait until Rose and Kanaya adopt a cat to whip out that title.” He was probably supposed to be acting politer towards the mysterious man from Terezi’s past but, even aside from their history, there was something about the Redguard that just rubbed him the wrong way.

"So nice of everyone to give me lots of hugs and affection," John interrupted, slowly exiting the background and joining the others, arms crossed over his chest and pout set on his face. "I know none of us were romantically entwined but jeez, you’d think maybe we were friends or something! You guys are lucky I’m not the Jarl yet, I might have you all put in the barracks for such blatant disrespect!" Though he was mostly complaining for the sake of complaining, Jade giggled off to the side, and John’s blue eyes narrowed at the challenge, uncrossing his arms and holding them out wide. "I changed my mind, I’m going to actually have you guys thrown in jail if I don’t feel appreciated. It’s hug time. Dave, Jade, you guys too. Bring it in."

"If you wanted me to pick you up and spin you around too you could have just asked. I just thought we could have done it in private: avert the weak public gaze from the intimacy of our love," Dave drawled as everyone gathered round to hug John, in what must have been a strange sight to the rest of Whiterun. Regardless, it wasn’t a bad thing, and it was nice to have a brief moment of normality with his three closest friends (plus Karkat) before things turned into a battle between Terezi’s story and Rose’s.

"Alright, I seriously need to talk to these two—but we can meet up later?" He nodded to John and Jade, privately hoping that John could last a couple of hours without getting himself into trouble. Satisfied that the two agreed, Dave motioned for Terezi and Karkat to follow him, chattering about whatever Terezi wanted: which seemed to be a mix of new foods she’d tried and different swords she’d seen, which obviously weren’t as good as his, while they made the brief walk to the inn. Being a Housecarl came with perks that Dave wouldn’t deny, and being on good terms with Hulda meant that he could walk into a room without having to worry about payment.

"Okay, so," Dave began as they found a room, sitting down opposite the other two. They didn’t exactly appear to be prisoner and captive—Karkat had mouthed off to Dave without Terezi batting an eyelid, and they seemed at ease with one another. "Now the two of you are in front of me I’m not sure I know what’s going on here. Rose says you took him hostage?"

"I did."

Dave sighed heavily at Terezi’s admission, hoping that Rose had misunderstood and that the whole thing had been a mistake. “Why would you do that?”

"He’s a thief."

Dave stared blankly at Terezi, wondering why he had ever expected this to be a rational conversation that he could follow because it made rational sense. “TZ, you can’t just kidnap people whenever you feel like it.”

"I think I already have, so your point is redundant."

"There’s a reason I refer to you as my second twin sister and I wouldn’t take it as a compliment." Arguing with Terezi was as pointless as ever too, all it ever seemed to do was confuse him into wondering if he was stupid or if Terezi was. "Okay, so you took him hostage and I’m not even gonna bother with why—p’sure I can work that one out. So what exactly are you doing with him?"

Terezi paused in her response, unsure exactly what to say. She didn’t know what she was doing with Karkat now, always verging further and further away from the Thieves’ Guild and spending far too much time with him personally. ”That’s not your business.”

There was no point arguing that, actually, it was his business ever since his sister and Karkat’s ‘not-my-mother’ mother had dragged him into it—but there was obviously something Terezi was hiding, and Dave assumed it was because Karkat was in the room too. She wouldn’t be stupid enough to reveal some master plan in front of him, and he could always ask her privately later. His main concern was getting enough information out of Karkat to make sure that he could relay it back to Rose and Kanaya so that they’d be happy—and if not, then he supposed that he’d have to remove Karkat from Terezi. ”Okay well you’re proving useless, so question time for you, Mr. Prisoner. Wanna clear this up any better than Terezi has? I guess we can start with the easy questions, like is she feeding you raw or cooked meat? Don’t eat that shit raw, it’s nasty no matter what she tells you. Is she giving you enough exercise? Gotta make sure your bones are big and strong too because I can’t send you back to Morthal undernourished or Rose’ll have my gorgeous locks of hair on a statue dedicated to Vaermina.”

Dave’s weird fascination with assigning everyone a place in some giant made up family was getting old fast, and also getting confusing—if he hadn’t seen the fact that they were near identical himself, he wouldn’t be sure Rose was really his sister or just a friend he called a sister for whatever reason. But it was nice to know placements in the family could switch, as Terezi had switched from daughter to second twin sister within the walk here, and that meant Karkat could worm his way out of the weird family dynamic as well, not fond of the idea of being related to anyone in the room, really. “Okay, first of all, I don’t know why you’re talking to me like I’m a kidnapped six year old. How old are you? 18? Great, then we’re both adults and you can treat me like you’d treat any other adult, which I guess is to say I’d move up from your nephew to your cousin or something else that implies I’m not a child. If you want to use a condescending tone you can at least focus on my profession and not my age, okay? Great.”

Crossing his arms and sighing exhaustedly, Karkat figured he might as well just fill Dave in on what was going on, since Terezi wasn’t bothering to put up much of a front here and obviously Dave was going to keep prodding until he had the full story. “She captured me in Riften because she wanted to destroy the Thieves Guild and apparently she thinks a lowly member like me is enough to do that. Or maybe she did—maybe she knows now I’m not that important and is keeping me prisoner to spite me for my uselessness. Anyway, we got distracted from taking down the Thieves Guild thanks to a dragon and now we’ve been off on thousands of bullshit adventures and I think we’ve both almost died at least four times each, and, now, I don’t know,” he admitted, glancing towards Terezi for have a second before shrugging his shoulder and turning back to Dave. “Maybe she’s keeping me to spite Kanaya. If she has a plan, she hasn’t told me. Which makes sense. Considering I’m just a thief and all.” Shoulders slumping slightly, he glanced towards the door of the room, eager to be through with this conversation and with speaking to Dave. “Is that all you need to know? Or does my nourishment really play a crucial part of things you have to report back to your actual sister.”

Terezi was slightly taken aback by how Karkat reacted to Dave, almost coming in to jump between the two of them but deciding that things were better for her if she just kept quiet and watched. She hadn’t really noticed Dave being condescending, because that was just how he spoke to everyone. It was part of his strange syntax that had interested her in him in the first place. Still, she could see Karkat’s side of the argument—which slightly unsettled it. She wasn’t supposed to see Karkat’s point of view, especially when he was attacking Dave over it. Terezi’s plan of keeping quiet also fell apart as Karkat began speaking, basically telling Dave everything and making Terezi uncomfortable for other reasons. She didn’t like the tone in which Karkat recalled everything, wanting to take the bitterness away from him and wondering if any time she’d said anything nice about him had actually been received—or if he’d just perceived it as sarcasm or some twisted back-handed compliment.

"I’m pretty sure I just mentioned the nourishment plays a crucial part of keeping my hair attached to my head. A guy’s gonna be missing his a-game if he’s scalped," Dave drawled, brushing off Karkat’s hostility easily. Trying to work out what to make of Karkat’s story was difficult, especially when it sounded so Terezi-like that he really had no way to defend her. "K, Terezi you’re outside for this next bit—I’m not even sure where to start on the Thieve’s Guild bullshit but—no, outside," he frowned as Terezi started to argue back. "I ‘aint gonna do anything to him, trust me; I’m just doing what I was told to. The sooner we get this done the sooner we can go do something fun," he promised her, relieved when she gave in and left the room—he had no doubt that she’d just go sit outside and listen anyway.

"The nourishment is slightly more serious than saving my locks," Dave turned back to Karkat, able to freely look over the Dunmer now that Terezi wasn’t there to stop him. He couldn’t really tell what shape the guy was in, seeing as he had no idea what he’d looked like before Terezi had taken him. "Kanaya mentioned something on your neck," Dave started, eyes flickering there before going back up to Karkat’s own eyes.

Karkat tensed slightly when Dave sent Terezi away—despite the bitter tone he’d taken describing what had happened, he didn’t exactly like the idea of her not being there, although it wasn’t as if he didn’t trust Dave. It would be difficult to be honest enough to satisfy Kanaya without being too honest, and he couldn’t exactly say he didn’t mind being Terezi’s prisoner anymore without the ‘why’ being brought into things, and the why was something he didn’t even completely understand at this point.

About to roll his eyes and politely inform Dave that he didn’t give one single shit about his precious golden locks, he froze up when Dave mentioned his neck, realizing too late that he must have tensed obviously enough for Dave to notice. “It’s healed now,” he muttered, lifting his shoulder in a slight shrug as if the wound was old news and didn’t matter. “We ran into a troll and neither of us are any good at fire magic,” he informed him, aware that he was twisting the story for in Terezi’s favor and hoping Dave wouldn’t catch him in his lie. “Fighting trolls without magic is hard and I only know daggers and archery. I was too close for archery and daggers mean getting closer. It landed a hit on me,” he shrugged, glancing towards the door again, more because he knew that was where Terezi was now than because he wanted to get out of this conversation, though that part was just as true. “Kanaya saw the wounds and assumed the worst, That’s all.”

Luckily, Rose had relayed the previous story about trolls, and Dave was inclined to believe Karkat. It was true that Terezi hadn’t touched fire magic since she was a child, and he could already see the bow that Karkat wore—even though it was obvious from the guys’ build that he wasn’t going to be using swords any time soon. That said, it didn’t mean that Dave ignored the look Karkat threw towards the door—unable to know him well enough to say for sure what it mean, but able to logically deduce that he was probably anxious. Dave didn’t think he could get the Dunmer to trust him completely, but it was worth trying to be a good person. ”Look, I know Terezi better than anyone. She’s a great girl but sometimes being great doesn’t mean you can overlook the fact they’re borderline psychopathic, and definitely sociopathic.”

"So I know what she’s done to guys like you and if that’s happening here then y’know, kind moral duty as a citizen to help you out," he shrugged, leaning back in his chair slightly as he let Karkat think it over. His own thoughts were slightly distracted by Terezi’s exploits, concerned that she was once again taking no regard for her personal safety and attempting something as stupid as bringing down an organization with links throughout almost every hold in Skyrim—let alone whether their influence could still reach into other parts of Tamriel. "Anyway, Rose seems sure enough that Terezi won’t turn up in Morthal again. I don’t know why, but I’m going to pretend it has nothing to do with the four times she’s almost died and the fact it sounds like Kanaya might want to make it a fifth, permanent time. So, don’t worry about Terezi, all right? She can be restrained if the situation calls for it. Just tell me what you want and I’ll do it and we can forget this whole thing ever happened."

Maybe something Dave was saying was intentionally condescending but it was more likely that everything just sounded that way to Karkat, eyes narrowing as he was pressed about his story. He knew it was more logical to stick with the troll story, but for whatever reason, he wanted to difficult, and he wanted Dave to know that even if he might technically need his help, he didn’t want it. “Fine,” Karkat grumbled, pulling at the bandage on his neck to reveal the wound, healed for the most part but starting to scar over, unfortunately. “It’s too clean to be from a troll, right? It’s from Terezi. If the troll hadn’t showed up, I’d probably be dead.”

Shrugging, he readjusted the bandage before he looked to meet Dave’s eyes again, irritated that the Redguard was so much taller and it was harder to make himself seem confident in comparison. “I got it because I mouthed off to her; I said something she didn’t like and I pushed it too far and she’d had it with me. And you know what? I still mouth off. I’m not scared of Terezi. I mean, yeah, she’s borderline psychopathic if we’re being generous but I don’t need you to restrain her while I run off into the shadows. She’d probably just find me later and kill me for thinking I could escape. But I didn’t lie to Kanaya and Rose to protect myself, I was trying to protect Kanaya. Just tell her I’m fine and then there isn’t an issue. Anyway,” he shrugged again, rolling his eyes at how long this was taking. “She hasn’t done anything since, and you can see it was a while ago, right? I’m fine. I think she’s keeping me around mostly because I can read,” he suggested, still unsure himself why she was keeping him around. “But it’s fine. We’re not—” he paused, grasping at some sort of term he could use to express their relationship and coming up short. “Look, the point is I don’t need you to rescue me, okay? Are we done?” he asked, crossing his arms impatiently and looking towards the door again in irritation.

Dave was quickly discovering that there was probably no one that Karkat wouldn’t mouth off to, staring through the guy’s rant as if there were 3 million other places he’d rather be—and there were. He couldn’t say that he was exactly surprised to learn that Karkat had lied about the wound, but he was confused about why Karkat had told him in what seemed to be an outburst of pride. If the guy wanted to get himself killed over something so pitiful, then who was Dave to stop him? He wasn’t here to do anything more than assure that Karkat wasn’t dead (which he wasn’t) and that he wouldn’t be in any more danger (he probably wasn’t.) "Fine, fine; it is duly noted that the princess can rescue herself and is happy walking a tight-rope with the dragon," Dave waved his hand, already bored of Karkat and wanting to find someone to talk to who didn’t make his head hurt. "Just make sure you drop a letter to Kanaya every so often and you can go back to mouthing off to Terezi to your heart’s content." Apparently he was right in predicting Terezi would be listening, as a muffled ‘finally’ came from behind the door, leaving Dave rolling his eyes at the girl.

Before they managed to exit a thought came to Dave, brain somehow only just processing that Karkat had been reading Terezi’s letters. He wasn’t sure exactly when that was, seeing as dragons had been appearing everywhere and he didn’t keep a diary of Riften’s attacks—nor could he fully remember when he’d sent certain letters. ”Out of curiosity,” Dave began, trying to act as nonchalant as possible about the situation. Surely Karkat would have made a comment by now with how hostile he was being to Dave. “How long have you been reading Terezi’s letters?”

Once Dave offered Karkat permission to continue being Terezi’s prisoner, the gravity of the situation came in and Karkat realized he had blown yet another chance to escape—which he wasn’t upset about at all, which left him wondering what was even wrong with him that he was so infatuated with someone who had taken him prisoner and dragged him around half of Skyrim already. But the reality was if the captor-prisoner bond was broken, Terezi would have no reason to spend time with him or even speak to him—there was no Dragonborn-thief bond. Besides, the worst thing that came with this relationship was Karkat didn’t get to choose where they went—it wasn’t like he had anywhere else to be, though, no one waiting for him back in Riften. Staying with Terezi was stupid and having to justify it was stupid and acting like it was simply a matter of pride was stupid but the truth behind it was so much stupider that he’d take giving Dave the wrong impression, especially if it meant he could further avoid completely admitting the reality to himself aloud.

Caught up in his own idiotic soap opera of a life, Karkat didn’t even notice anything that there might’ve been something off about Dave’s tone or even the fact he brought up the letters specifically before they reunited with Terezi, though it turned out she’d been listening all along anyway. “A while, I don’t know,” he shrugged, trying to recount exactly how long ago he’d earned the scar on his neck before giving up—days had blurred together too much with the strange sleep patterns and endless drama. “Long enough to know all about your weird romance though, so don’t worry,” he added in, mostly for jest as it had been pretty clear there was nothing going on between Dave and John and it was just something he wrote because Terezi couldn’t read it anyway—not to mention Dave had made a similar joke today after John had demanded a group hug. “Are we done in here yet?” he asked, impatient to get away from Dave and back to Terezi so maybe they could leave and he’d never have to look at the massive Redguard again.

"Cool," Dave shrugged off Karkat’s response, internally praying for redemption. It had sounded to him like Karkat and Jade weren’t rushing to get back together. "Here, he’s all yours," Dave offered as he opened the door, glad to be rid of his moral obligation over the Dunmer. How Terezi put up with him was a wonder that no deity could ever explain to him, and he was beginning to think that perhaps she was the one who needed rescuing from Karkat.

"Exactly! He is mine and this conversation was dumb in the first place," Terezi huffed in return, bored from waiting for the two of them to reach the conclusion she knew they would anyway. She hadn’t hurt Karkat recently, and she wasn’t planning on doing it either. The only issue she’d gotten from eavesdropping was that uncomfortable feeling in her stomach when Karkat spoke of his life as meaning nothing to her—clearly he didn’t appreciate how he was the first captive she’d ever let live, let alone spend so much time with. "So now we’ve affirmed that I have no intention of killing Karkat any time soon, can we do the fun things I have been promised?"

"I guess it wouldn’t kill me to spend some time with you. The longer it keeps John out of wandering off into a cave the better," he smirked, Terezi happily cackling at any jab made towards John’s direction. "Plus, I want to see if you owe me money for such a good job with the tutoring—might make mad cash on the side for it. Ever seen two Redguards spar?" He asked Karkat, ignoring the immediate excitement that overcame Terezi. "Usually it’s brutal, but TZ wasn’t raised on swords like the rest of us,” he teased, leaving Terezi indignant from such an attack on her pride.

"Rude! I bet I could beat you now!"

"How much are we betting?"

"I bet Karkat," she laughed, even happier when Dave’s mouth twitched with annoyance as he began to lead them back to John and Jade.

Karkat could only mutter an annoyed ‘okay’ as Terezi restaked her claim and affirmed that Karkat belonged to her, slightly annoyed he was being spoken of as if he were an object, or least feigning the annoyance—it wasn’t anything new with Terezi in all honesty. What he did keep quiet about complaining about was doing ‘something fun’ with apparently the rest of the group—just because he happened to know John and Jade didn’t mean he felt comfortable spending so much time with the lot of them as a group, and he didn’t want to see Dave and Terezi flirt with each other all day. But as it tended to be with this relationship, Karkat had no say in the matter, simply following them along and praying they’d get tired from the sparring and maybe they could leave. Barely listening to their conversation, Karkat lifted his head once he realized he was being spoken to, trying to figure out what he’d missed. Despite Dave addressing him, they didn’t really pause for his answer, and Karkat fell back again, sighing softly when Terezi bet him as her offer in case she lost but keeping his mouth shut about it again—technically speaking he sort of was just a possession, wasn’t that part of the prisoner-captor relationship he was relying on? Wasn’t really fair to care.

"Shit, shit, act casual," John whispered to Jade once the others approached, crossing his legs from where they were sitting and waved a little too enthusiastically. "Fiiiiiiiinally! We were so bored without you; can we finally do something interesting now?"

Jade sighed, rolling her eyes. “John and I went to clear out a bandit camp once you guys left and it literally took five minutes,” Jade deadpanned, ignoring John’s horrified gasp at her betrayal and further outbursts of protest. “We didn’t have any issues or get hurt but on the walk back John tripped and scraped his knees. It’s not even really bleeding. It bled for 30 seconds. He was afraid you—” “I wasn’t afraid!” “—would notice and yell at him.” She shrugged, secretly amused by John’s childish behavior but also slightly concerned herself Dave would be angry at her for taking him out. “Everything else was totally, one hundred percent fine though, he just caught his foot on a rock.”

"Gettin’ armed and dangerous over here, while I was gone, huh?" Dave raised an eyebrow, slightly annoyed that the two had wandered off when he presided over the jurisdiction of making sure John was alive. Even though the two of them could handle themselves, the behaviour of bandits couldn’t always be predicted and he could only hope that it had been a small crowd—the last thing he needed was more of them coming after the Jarl’s son. "Jade, you’re a dirty tattle-tale," Dave mock-scolded, stepping in-between the two. "And it makes my job ten times easier to whoop this guy’s ass," he turned back to John, lightly punching his shoulder before sighing. "Pretty rude to go have fun while I’m stuck with these two."

For Terezi, it was odd to see Dave interacting with other people that he was just as close to as he was her—probably closer. There had never really been anyone else around when she’d been dating him, and maybe she’d taken it for granted that she’d always have some kind of insight into the strange world of his head. Regardless, it was nice to see that he had close friends—especially if Jade was telling the truth about their activities.

"So now we’ve sorted out the domestic, we’re pretty much free to hang around like chumps until Terezi decides we’re unworthy of her time again," Dave joked, although there might have been an underlying truth to his words that Terezi didn’t miss, but was happy to ignore. "I’m guessing you’ll want me to look over Pyralspite before you leave too, huh?"

"As if I’d let anyone else touch him," Terezi scoffed, aware that her inability to allow someone else to work on her sword meant that its condition was getting worse and worse.

"K. Well, I know how much you guys get a hard on over my sick forging skills but I’d rather just chill for a bit and then get down to the business—sound good?"

”We’re free to hang out like chumps thanks to me,” John spoke up, rubbing his arm as if Dave’s punch had genuinely hurt and earning a few quirked brows from the group. “Um, because Jade would have to go do companion work if I hadn’t politely helped her? Duh?” And Jade rolled her eyes again, though she did offer a thank you mostly out of courtesy—in reality on her own, she probably could have cleared the camp in half the time without John. “For the record I wasn’t tattling,” Jade clarifying, rising to her feet and scowling halfheartedly at Dave. “I was trying to help you keep your job! After, you know, I brought John to a bandit camp, but. Yeah, you’re welcome!”

Mostly disregarding the commotion the two Nords were making over Dave, Karkat could only roll his eyes and wait for them to pick an allegedly fun activity and then for Terezi to apparently decide they were unworthy of her time again, a little confused by the statement when from what he’d heard, Dave was the one who had left—but he supposed it was possible that since they’d stayed friends, it was more in reference to their relationship now. He felt a hint of unwarranted jealousy as they talked about Pyralspite; it wasn’t like he was a blacksmith and she wouldn’t let him fix the sword, so being jealous of whatever bond they’d forged within the sword was stupid—but he knew that the sword was important to her, that it had some special meaning to her, and knowing Dave got to share that, maybe was potentially something reasonable to be jealous over--but still stupid. Everything was exhausting as long as they were stuck here.

While John started some tirade about how badly his arm hurt thanks to Dave, and how he’d probably never be able to lift a war hammer again, Jade slipped towards the Dunmer and his Redguard, offering a friendly wave to Karkat and a polite smile to Terezi. “So! Haven’t really had a chance to meet you but I’ve heard lots of… things about you from Dave! Mostly good things! But also things like, you took my old buddy Karkat here prisoner and all,” she giggled, still wondering at the story there, as Karkat didn’t exactly seem a prisoner beside her. “Maybe you could tell me a little about yourself without Dave’s bias,” she grumbled, turning up a lip at Mr. Cool Kid’s no fun agenda that he sometimes took on, mostly because all his friends were insane, but still. “Oh, and I heard he trained you himself, huh? I tried to learn swordfighting with him but, I’m just no good at it. But you’re the Dragonborn now! I bet you could totally kick his butt if you tried to,” she laughed, looking over her shoulder at John continuing his lecture on his health and wellbeing. “The companions have a pretty nice training area if you guys were interested,” she shrugged, looking back towards them and hoping her eagerness to see what must have been two of the best swordsmasters have a go wasn’t too clear

"Man, don’t even complain about your weak-ass arms when you and Jade are clearly trying to get me fired," Dave bantered back with John, getting far too absorbed in his friend’s bullshit. Apparently this left Jade bored of them, as her attention turned to Terezi and suddenly she was asking a million to one questions that needed answering. The issue with meeting new people that she didn’t plan to kill, was that Terezi had to say something constructive about her life and herself. In reality, there wasn’t really much for her to talk about—a wandering eighteen year old simultaneously searching for and running from her old best friend wasn’t the kind of introduction that made for healthy friendships. "Well, if we stick with generic introductions then I’m Terezi Pyrope. I travel Skyrim patching up holes where authority fails. Most people attribute this to the fact I’m basically a child to the Imperial Legion, when in reality I just really like justice and snowberries," she shrugged, deciding that it would suffice. "And likewise, Dave forgot to fill me in on some details about you too."

Hearing his name, Dave’s ears perked up for the rest of the conversation—obviously not reacting to the part where she referred to him as one of the best swordmasters. ”Like I said to Karkat—Terezi wasn’t raised like I was. My bro was sticking shitty swords in my hand before I even knew how to sit up, had to take on the role of my culture; Terezi was just a pampered, skinny brat who could barely hold a sword up when I met her: she’s good but girl ‘ain’t great,” he smirked, easily dodging the hand that reached out to punch him.

"Ah, but what I lack in your brute strength, I make up for in intelligence; I much prefer books and logic to fighting," Terezi explained to Jade, before signalling to her eyes. "But I can’t do that anymore, so I adapted and found that murdering bandits is very fun! I’m slightly jealous that you two got to do something cool," she grinned, happy to bring back up the bandit camp to set John off again.

"Jade Harley!" she piped back, interested in Terezi’s brief summary of who she was, what she did and why. "Pretty rude of him not to mention me when he’s told me plenty about you, but I guess I don’t have as interesting a story," she shrugged, looking back over to Jorrvaskr before she spoke up. "I’ve always lived in Whiterun and when my mom died I was kinda in trouble, since I never knew my dad, and the Companions took me in and taught me how to fight and I’ve been with them ever since! And that’s how I met Dave, too—he used to come by to try and get old Gray-Mane to teach him the ropes, but now he just kinda hangs around here because he doesn’t want to teach him or something. Anyway, sadly that’s the extent of my story, all we really do is clear out bandits from around Whiterun."

"Okay before Johnny-boy gets started again, if you would like to form a polite audience then I’ll grace you with this spar. Ladies, try not to get too worked up," he smirked towards John and Karkat.

Jade could only talk so much before she and John and Karkat were pushed off to the sidelines, the two Nords excited to watch the duel and the Dunmer impatient for when they could move on to Riverwood or even just retire to the inn for the night—anything that got them away from Dave and his obnoxious personality. He could only roll his eyes again at Dave’s quip, while Jade giggled and John pulled a sneer, although once the two seemed ready to start their spar, John figured he’d put his two cents in. “Dave! If you beat the Dragonborn I think I’ll finally feel ready to consummate our love!” Had to give him a reason to try with all his might, after all.

"I always knew this day would come," he smiled at John, blowing the younger boy a kiss as he pulled out his own sword as Terezi did the same. "Pyralspite and Caledfwlch: we’re fucking shambles. Too bad we’re not competing in terrible sword names. Usual rules, although below shoulder with your armour.”

Little communication had to happen between them after that, the two both taking time to size the other up and see who would move first. Predictably, it was Dave—she could tell by the first strike that he wasn’t aiming to hit her, only to see how she’d block. The nice thing about sparring with Dave was that although it required skill of the blade, it also required thinking—she had to guess what he was doing while making sure her body kept up with her thought processes. They spent the first couple of hits toying with one another, not making any real progress but getting used to one another.

It was when Terezi pushed things to barely miss Dave’s arm that they began properly, with Dave immediately leading and pushing Terezi onto the defense. He had always surpassed Terezi, skilled and toned enough to increase the agility of the blade through his wrist, whereas Terezi still depended on the strength of her waist and arms.

"Elbows," he grunted in warning, graciously waiting a few moments as Terezi re-adjusted her stance to pull her arms closer against her, while keeping the sword out. Apparently that was better, as Dave was moving again and Terezi’s feet were barely resting on the ground as she continued to move away from his advances. She suddenly changed tactics, with her sword coming to rest on his torso as his came across her chest. Laughing breathily at one another, they continued again and again—eventually with Terezi’s ability to block and dodge wearing down against Dave’s precision and force, admitting defeat as he was in position to stab her through the back.

"I used to win all the time," she mock-sulked, buzzing from the adrenaline and happy enough to take defeat—as Dave had said, there was no way she could have beaten him. Her practice came from an unreformed need to kill and protect—Dave saw swords as his own art-form, almost crafting his body around them instead of simply forcing them to adapt to him. He sparred as if he was dancing, whereas Terezi sparred as if she was trying to fly by spending as little time routed to one spot as possible. Unsurprisingly, the latter never won.

"You used to cheat. All the time," Dave shook his head, but there was a small grin lifting up his lips—shaking his head as Terezi adamantly denied being a cheater. "Ahh, I forgot that they added kissing into the standard for sword-fighting; don’t tell me that’s how you got so close to his neck too," he grinned wider, head cocking in Karkat’s direction as Terezi momentarily blanched.

"Don’t be an idiot," she hissed back, thoughts flickering back when she’d told Karkat to kiss her. Dave simply laughed her off, happy enough in his victory not to push the matter and instead pestering John over his ‘maiden’s first kiss’.

The spar was very strange to watch—even if Karkat knew Terezi was mortal and could be bested, he couldn’t think of a time he’d actually seen it done, by a human at least, and without the dark to aid them. Instead of enjoying the display of swordsmanship, like Jade and John seemed to be doing, watching the fight just made Karkat feel uneasy—it wasn’t comforting to see how easily Dave was getting the best of Terezi, and if he was better, than surely lots of other people were too. Things had been much easier when he thought she was a master at this, because he could barely protect her as it was with his flimsy daggers—Dave fought like his sword was part of him and it was very strange to see someone he was accustomed to being the best, or being close to the best, being shown up.

"No wonder she managed to capture you," Jade interrupted, pulling Karkat’s attention away from the Redguards to the Nords, surprised to see that John was actually watching the fight very closely, blue eyes darting to catch every move the two of them made. "What even happened there?" she pressed, curiosity getting the better of her despite the fact that she’d planned not to ask. "Are you really her prisoner and all? And if so isn’t it like, my responsibility as your friend to get you out of it?" She cocked her head to the side as she looked at Karkat, blonde hair spilling over her shoulder as she did.

"I don’t need to be rescued," Karkat informed her, significantly less hostile than he had been when he’d said the same thing to Dave. "She’s not a threat to me—I mean," he paused, not wanting to sound like he could be superior to her if it came to a fight, "she doesn’t want to hurt me? We’re… I don’t know. I think I’m more liked hired help at this point but without pay. I get free food and rooms at inns though, most of the time," he shrugged, looking back towards the sparring match and shrugging. "I don’t have anything to go back to, anyway."

"Someone’s got a cruuuuuuush," John sing-songed without moving more than his mouth, eyes still focused on every move the two made as they fought, and he didn’t even stop to get Karkat’s reaction. Jade’s eyes lit up, like what John had just said had made everything suddenly click into place, and Karkat went pale, hurriedly looking towards the Redguards in hopes they hadn’t heard anything, though it seemed now that their match was over they were just teasing each other about whatever. Karkat quickly denied the claim and not-so-politely demanded they both shut up while Dave strode towards John, and the Nord looked up at him with a smile and a shrug. "I’m really proud of you and all Dave but, I dunno, I kind of have a headache. Maybe tomorrow night."

"What is this, John? Another night blowing me off instead of on? There’s only so many times a man can read The Lusty Argonian Maid instead." From behind the three who had been watching, Dave noticed an odd couple walking towards them—adorned with masks that he’d never seen before. "Check these guys out: faces like glowing mushrooms. Fashion is beautiful," Dave snorted to his companions, only to tense up as the men got closer. Even if they were dressed like idiots, there wasn’t any guarantee that they’d be harmless. "Heads up," he warned, mostly to make sure that John stayed close to him—just in case. He took the initiative to approach the intruders, unsurprised to find Terezi by his side as he did so.

"You there! You’re the one they call Dragonborn?" They called out, apparently sizing up Terezi. The tone of their voices did not sound good to Dave at all, and his hand tightened around Caledfwlch, glad that he hadn’t sheathed his weapon as quickly as Terezi had. On the other hand, Terezi was starting to regret sparring with Dave if trouble was going to start: pulling out her weapon would be too obvious, and she was pretty exhausted in the first place.

"Yes; I am Dragonborn."

"Your lies fall on deaf ears, Deceiver! The True Dragonborn comes … You are but his shadow. When Lord Miraak appears all shall bear witness. None shall stand to oppose him!"

The situation quickly spiralled out of control as they moved to attack her, Terezi freezing up at the flames and readily moving as Dave pushed her back—simultaneously checking that John was still behind him. The first cultist was quickly stricken down by him, but he couldn’t close the gap between himself and the second cultist in time to stop Terezi freaking out from the fire again. Luckily he didn’t have to worry about that, as Jade’s crossbow managed to deal a killing blow with damn good accuracy, if Dave was to be honest.

"Smooth moves Harley," he smirked, turning towards the Nord for a high five.

Meanwhile, with absolute certainty that they were dead, Terezi regained her composure and began checking through their clothes—rather stunned at the whole affair. Lord Miraak? The Greybeard’s hadn’t mentioned another Dragonborn and neither had anyone else in Skyrim. Searching through their clothes proved fruitful—producing a note. ”Kar,” she called out to the Dunmer, holding out the note expectantly.

The fighting had started so fast, and Karkat’s bow had been out of reach, having been set down for ease and comfort,--they never got close enough for him to use his daggers, quickly cut down by the ever impressive Dave and a quick shot from the crossbow Karkat hadn’t even see on Jade, the Nord moving to high five Dave back with a laugh. What was most surprising was how Terezi had moved behind Dave, shying away from the fight—a move Dave had anticipated as well, having stepped to defend her as well as John, and Karkat’s red eyes narrowed as he tried to work it out. Before he got the chance though, Terezi was passing off some piece of paper she’d found on the men to him, and he stepped to take it, not commenting on the strange nickname she’d apparently decided to pick up.

"Board the vessel Northern Maiden docked at," he paused, voice rising with surprise and disbelief. "Raven Rock?" How had even Morrowind heard about Terezi, to the point where they were capable of identifying her by her face, assuming they hadn’t heard John screaming about how he’d sleep with Dave if he beat the Dragonborn, which seemed quite unlikely. "Take it to… Windhelm… then begin your search. Kill the False Dragonborn known as Terezi Pyrope before she reaches Solstheim. Return with word of your success, and Miraak shall be most pleased." He squinted at the note a moment, trying to figure out who this Miraak was and why exactly this guy wanted Terezi dead. He handed the note back to her, already well aware of where this was leading but praying maybe for once they could just ignore it. “Please, please, please don’t tell me we’re going back to Windhelm.”

Terezi wasn’t sure whether they would go to Windhelm or not, completely flummoxed over the message. She didn’t think she was fake—she really had shouted and she’d absorbed dragon souls; she’d even been verified by the Greybeards. Maybe the issue at hand was that someone else was claiming to be Dragonborn? If that was the case, she would have liked to have met them to have someone who understood what it was like—but she didn’t think they were really the talking kind if they were trying to kill her. Before she had any say in the matter, Dave was heading closer to her with a pressed lip.

"So I’m guessing this is the cool part of being Dragonborn?"

"No; this hasn’t happened once since I found out," Terezi sharply replied, already knowing where Dave’s train of thought was going and wanting to reel him away from it. She wasn’t necessarily in danger, and if she was then she didn’t want him to know about it. "I don’t even know why they think I’m intending on going to Solstheim—I wouldn’t have ever reached it in my life if they hadn’t just tried to kill me!"

"If you go there, they’re going to try and kill you again; we both know you won’t be able to fight them. Don’t be stupid Pyrope."

"You’re not the boss of me, Dave. I’ve managed plenty without you around."

Dave’s eyebrows raised a centimeter from her blow, rolling easily off her tongue as if it wasn’t as cutting as she intended it. “You didn’t manage that last guy too well,” he pointed out, their other three companions almost becoming invisible as they started to bicker. “Look, I don’t usually care for getting in your business but the magnitude of this situation doesn’t seem to be making communication with your brain. I’ll get John to hold you in Whiterun if I have to—you’re not dying over something so stupid: it’s obviously bait.”

"A Jarl’s son has more power than the Dragonborn?" She bit back, tension rising between them as Dave looked to John for support.

John had barely heard their argument, ears perking at the sound of Solstheim and eyes darting about while he calculated to himself. He was pulled away from his thoughts by the sound of his name, nearly outwardly cringing at how against this whole thing Dave seemed, and easily bounced over to the blonde, holding up his hand for to Terezi in a bit of a gesture of compromise. “Daaaaaaaave,” he whined, elbowing him lightly, not that his housecarl could likely even feel it through all his thick armor. “Don’t you have… like, a sister in Solstheim? I bet you haven’t seen her in a while, right?” he ventured, trying to make it sound like he was giving Dave a legitimate excuse to go to Morrowind without explicitly stating that he could go to look after Terezi—because that still wasn’t John’s endgame.

Jade hung back in the background, spinning to explain to a few questioning Companions what had transpired in their training ground, and Karkat stepped in and pulled Terezi aside while Dave was distracted by the Jarl’s son. “Why is he saying you’re not capable of fighting them?” he demanded, not bothering to sugarcoat it or dance around the question for the sake of manners and delicacy. “Why did you back away from them when they attacked you, what are you afraid of?”

John’s hands slipped behind his back, a gesture he was hoping made himself seem a bit more innocent but probably only made him look more conniving, if Dave was catching on to him at all, at least. “Maybe you’d like a vacation?” he suggested, tilting his head to the side. “You could take a casual vacation to Solstheim and visit the sister you haven’t seen in years! Doesn’t that sound great?” he didn’t pause to give Dave a chance to argue, continuing on as if the Redguard had no say in the matter which, was essentially true. “Great! Then it’s settled. You’re gonna take a vacation to Solstheim to see Roxy, I personally have been feeling soooooooo exhausted from all the duties a Jarl’s son has to deal with, so I’m thinking of taking a vacation too! Hey!” He spun towards Karkat and Terezi, acting as if he’d just thought of a brilliant idea and it hadn’t been what he’d been working up to the entire time. “To save on travel—I mean I’m the Jarl’s son so I’m loaded and you guys are what, a wandering adventurer, a thief, and a tragically underpaid housecarl? We can all take the same boat over! Doesn’t that sound like the greatest idea ever? I’m so glad it’s settled, Dave, let’s go pack!”

Dave’s face fell into an unnatural look of incredulously as John began siding with Terezi, feeling a sense of betrayal from the two of them. While it wasn’t impossible that the two of them had the same idea in mind, John definitely wanted something out of going to Solstheim and it made Dave nervous that he couldn’t tell what. Still, there was no arguing with John—whatever he wanted, Dave was obligated to go along with. Swallowing down his emotions as John called for Dave to come with him, he turned back to Terezi again—unsure when about’s she’d moved closer to Karkat and further away from him.

Taking a holiday meant leaving Jade, seeing as she was tied to the companions. He waited with anticipation as she finished hugging John and Karkat, feeling the anger dissipate into a dulled annoyance as she whispered for him to be safe, arms squeezing her in recognition as he let go. “You’re not going there with a blunt weapon,” he relented, holding out his hand and feeling calmer when Terezi handed it over without hesitation. ”I’ll meet you by the docks in Windhelm,” he told Terezi, carefully handling Pyralspite as he glanced over the sword’s current state.

"Sure," she replied, surprised by the turn of events but not about to complain. It was when she was finally left alone with Karkat that Terezi regarded the question he’d asked earlier, which she’d ignored in favour of paying attention to Dave and John. It seemed that being with Dave again had taught her that she’d taken some things for granted. She and Dave had always worked well in battle because they knew each other, she could predict his moves just as she’d predict hers. Even though she trusted Karkat, they couldn’t fight as effectively as her and Dave did; he would have never known that she’d freeze up.

"I don’t like fire," she muttered, shifting uncomfortably now the weight of Pyralspite was missing. She trusted Dave with him, but that didn’t mean that she liked being without him—the only thing she had left on her that gave a sense of security was her necklace, and it seemed inappropriate to pull it out around Karkat. "I mean, I like campfires because they’re small and don’t get out of control. I just… it gets too big; it burns," she tried not to shudder, body language becoming stiff regardless. Still, she didn’t have to go into great depths about it, and the conversation was officially closed as she swiftly moved onto a new topic. "I don’t need much, but you need ingredients right? We can either shop here or at Windhelm."

When Terezi admitted that she didn’t like fire, it sort of clicked into place almost like it was something he’d always known in the back of his head but just never really connected. It was a strange fear to him, and he supposed it would be considered as much by most Dunmer, with their resistance to fire—after all, when things grew awkward between them Karkat would poke around and readjust the fire with his bare hands as something to do and he was fine, and he wondered now if her vision was too blurry for her to ever see him play with fire like that. Still, her fear made him think something must have happened to her, wondering if it was anything like his story—the part where his old family home had been burned down, along with all their possessions after his father’s execution.

He didn’t get a chance to offer anything to that conversation topic, be it comfort or prodding, because she switched conversations at lightspeed, nearly leaving Karkat with whiplash trying to keep up. “Here,” he replied immediately, not wanting to leave even the shadow of a doubt that he might not mind going back to Windhelm, or spending any extra unnecessary time within the city that he still couldn’t believe they were going back to again. “Here’s fine, the lady at this alchemy shop is nicer than the one in Windhelm anyway. But, ingredients are expensive considering how easy they are to find if you ever leave the comfort of the city walls so, I don’t need you to buy them, I can just forage more. I mostly only need simple things for health, since you keep demanding I make salves for you despite your restoration magic,” he grumbled, not sincerely annoyed by it and just putting it on for their typical routine. “You know what we should pick up? Mudcrab chitin, fire salts, and elves ear—well, I have elves ear but the other two, I think I could make a useful potion for you out of that,” he continued, delving in to another endless tirade about herbs as they headed off to make their preparations for Solstheim.


	20. windhelm v

Karkat and Terezi arrived at the docks first, leaving Karkat slightly bitter on having to spend additional time in Windhelm waiting for John and Dave—who he didn’t even want along on this journey. Without them, things fell back into a comfortable, easy place with Terezi and he could talk to her easily and there was no one around treating him like a six year old child or a helpless prisoner, and he liked that—but Dave seemed to demand the most of Terezi’s attention, and Karkat fell into the background with the blonde around. He supposed it could be because they hadn’t seen each other in a while, but knowing their history didn’t make him more comfortable about the state of things, as it was.

It turned out to be more John’s fault that the two were late, Karkat expecting it had been Dave’s, as he still had to tamper with Terezi’s sword. Evidently it had sort of been a combination of that, with John dragging Dave away to help him choose what to pack every time Dave started to make progress on Pyralspite. But playing the blame game didn’t matter—getting out of this wretched city mattered, and so they shifted focus to acquiring transit. What should have been as easy as paying the captain of the Northern Maiden became more complicated when he confessed that the cultists he’d ferried across had frightened him, and he didn’t want to go back to Raven Rock because of them. Karkat nearly growled at the hold up, too eager to get out of the city to deal with the ferryman’s irrational fear of ever sailing towards Solstheim again, but John assured them he would handle it, shooing them from the ship so he could properly haggle.

Karkat could only groan as they waited on the Jarl’s son, leaning against the wall of Windhelm that kept the Argonians in the docks and outside, away from the humans. John was still on the boat, gesturing wildly in a way that left Karkat curious as to what he could even be saying—but the dockyard was loud around the other ship, and in annoyance, he glanced towards it. Looked to be just a bossy ship captain loudly ordering her crew around, and Karkat idly wondered if they might have better luck with her—but would it be worth it? He wasn’t so sure of that.

Terezi’s attention had been subdued to her thoughts, confused by the situation which had suddenly cropped up. She could only think of every enemy she’d made, worried that it seemed she’d had to add a new one to that list—a new one that was coming across the ocean for her. Clicking her tongue in annoyance at the lack of information she had—and how much time John was taking—Terezi also began watching over the dock, always uncomfortable by the races which seemed to inhabit it: another indication of the racism which had never been eradicated.

Some shouting further along the dock seemed to corroborate with this, with Terezi watching there instead. It was hard to make out what race the woman and her crew were, but suddenly that didn’t matter to Terezi. Even if most of the dock blurred out into beef-brown, there was a bright reflection of juniper-blue. There was only one person in the world who seemed to carry that colour armor, and Terezi found herself on her feet before she even realized the tension that had rolled up into her shoulders. Her feet moved automatically, as if the rest of the world had blurred out to her suspicions.

It was no surprise that her silent advance was noticed, crew members mirroring her tensions as their hands moved to their weapons. Such crucial details escaped Terezi—too transfixed on the confirmation she needed. It seemed the woman had also noticed her, and the two of them came to a standstill, as if time had stopped to allow them to stare at each other for all of eternity. She could pick out the eye-patch that sat next to Vriska’s hair—hiding away the damage Terezi had caused so many years ago: whereas Terezi could only wear Vriska’s marks on herself with confidence.

"Vriska," she suddenly snarled, body burning hot with a rage that blinded her to anything else—already moving before the other woman had a chance to say something. She didn’t think to pull out her weapon, simply lashing out in a fit of anger rather than any real intention to harm. She swung at Vriska, unsurprised when the Imperial ducked out of her blow before it could hit. Terezi was undeterred, grabbing the other woman by the shoulder and slamming her against the wall of the ship. "I should have killed you," she hissed, vaguely aware of Karkat touching her, but could easily ignore his presence in comparison to her size and strength—hands switching from pinning Vriska to enclosing around her throat.

Things happened very quickly almost out of nowhere, too fast for Karkat to keep up, and before he knew it, Terezi was lunging at the loud mouth across the docks. Ordinarily, that wouldn’t be a problem, but she hadn’t drawn her weapon and Karkat hadn’t missed the two syllables she’d hissed before moving to strike: Vriska. Even if Karkat didn’t know the full story on her, he knew enough to know that whether she was in denial about it or she’d just lied to him, finding Vriska again had been an important part of Terezi’s life, but he didn’t think this was right—if she wanted to kill Vriska she would have gone for her sword, so Karkat could only assume she was acting out of surprise and anger, hurrying to her side to try to pry her hands away from the pirate, to no avail.

It was then that Dave had to stop watching by with as much confusion as everyone else—things were going to be even worse if Terezi killed Vriska, and by the looks of Karkat’s attempts, it seemed Dave was the only person around who could match Terezi in size. “Terezi stop,” he tried to warn her, moving closer to the Redguard and pushing Karkat out of the way with a curt ‘move’. He managed to pull the woman away from Vriska, promptly turning on Dave instead. “Terezi. Calm down. TZ c’mon,” he hushed her, grimacing as she was definitely going to leave bruises from trying to get back to Vriska. He managed to corner her away from the ship, murmuring words that Vriska couldn’t make out from her position, but her eye didn’t miss the physical comfort he gave her—rubbing circles into her shoulder and petting her hair. Her own form of comfort came from John, reassuring that she was fine and ignoring how shaken up Terezi’s sudden attack on her had been.

Dave was much more effective, simply shoving Karkat aside and sweeping Terezi away, and Karkat wasn’t sure if he was more annoyed by the way Dave had just shoved him or by the way he was calming Terezi down, drawing shapes on her skin and touching her hair in what felt like a manner that was a little too familiar for friends. Seething with jealousy and annoyance, he barely noticed John scurry passed him to check on Vriska, apologizing for Terezi and informing the pirate he’d had no idea something like that would occur.

Seeing that Terezi had calmed down enough to stand by herself again, the Imperial straightened herself up—eyes briefly leering at the Dunmer who had stepped in before disregarding him before turning her attention to what actually mattered. ”Hello to you too, sister,” Vriska called out, voice slightly hindered by the hands that had tried to strangle her.

Vriska seemed to recover fairly quickly, drawing Karkat’s attention with the look she gave him, making him recoil slightly before she spoke. Her attitude suggested she hadn’t almost just been strangled to death, but he supposed as a pirate, you got used to constant threats to your health. He considered moving to Terezi, trying to act as some sort of comfort, but he hadn’t done any good a moment ago, and he doubted he’d be able to do anything now. Dave seemed to be doing far better with handling her, and he let himself slink into the background, mostly focusing on observing and trying to figure out their relationship.

"Vriskaaaaaaaa, c’mon, don’t pick a fight," John whined, lightly tugging her arm and glancing towards Terezi. "I guess that’s a weird thing to say to someone who literally just got attacked by someone I’m traveling with. I thought you were gonna be in Raven Rock, why are you still around Windhelm? Didn’t you think maybe you could have mentioned that to your boyfriend before he sailed to another continent?" He shook his head, rolling his eyes as if it had been the most obvious thing in the world. "I guess it’s okay. I found you before we had to pay that guy waaaaaaaay more gold than necessary. And you’re not—sorry about that, I um… sort of knew you guys had a history but," he dropped his voice a little, hoping Terezi wouldn’t hear him, "I guess I didn’t realize how serious it was? I didn’t plan on her being with me when we met up, though! That’s why a little warning might have been nice!"

"I’m not picking a fiiiiiiiight," Vriska teased John back, pulling out the vowels in a mirror of how he’d done the same with her name. "You didn’t plan it but it happened, and that’s okay," she shrugged, but her eyes were still focused on Terezi, rather than John. The Redguard certainly looked more capable than the last time Vriska had seen her: she was bigger and stronger, but Vriska was willing to bet that she wasn’t all that different on the inside. "How could I help myself when whispers told me that the Jarl’s son was boarding for Morrowind—with the Dragonborn herself, no less?" Vriska’s voice raised in volume then, directly addressing Terezi to push for a reaction and frowning slightly when there was none. The other woman seemed frozen for a reaction and that just wouldn’t do! Vriska hadn’t coached her to be a baby, after all.

John’s eyebrows drew together as Vriska continued, eyes darting towards Terezi and feeling guilt settle in his gut for what Vriska was doing. He’d never planned for the two to meet, expecting the Dragonborn and Karkat to go on their way, and maybe Dave would tag along or maybe he really would go see his sister, but either way—Terezi and Vriska would stay clear of each other and he wouldn’t have to deal with this weird rivalry they had, and more importantly, neither would they.

"Of course, it must be rather difficult to have a fake identity now; your face is being quickly learnt. Which I suppose is fine if you have a pretty one," she stepped forwards slightly, close enough to lower her voice if she wanted to—she didn’t—but far enough not to be able to touch the younger woman. "Remember when I had a pretty face Terezi?" She sighed dramatically, feeling reassured when Terezi tensed up—a sign that yes, she did remember. "Of course you do—after all, I’d be insulted if you didn’t! Surely you need to take some pride in your handiwork,” she hissed.

"You blinded me," the Redguard tried to bite back, but the words didn’t come out with any force or conviction: if anything, they were meek and desperate for a valid excuse as to why she’d done it.

"Aaaaaaaah yes, I blinded you! I seem to recall it was while you were melting my face though, don’t you think it was a little… justified?” She grinned, pleased with the pun she’d managed to slip in. It sounded so much smoother when such things happened.

"That’s not what happened," Dave interjected, concerned at how Terezi was, essentially, lying down and taking whatever Vriska came up with. He didn’t believe that Terezi had lied or twisted the events when she’d told him—especially the part where Vriska murdered another girl and paralyzed another: a fact he had brought up to John many times to try and get him to set his sights somewhere else. Terezi may have been a handful, but Vriska was downright uncontrollable, only ever distinguishable as a human with morals when she was alone with John.

”Oh Dave: all looks, no brain,” Vriska pouted sympathetically, brushing off his accusation easily. “Terezi can talk for herself, can’t you Pyrope?”

"That’s not what—"

"—See! Well no, you can’t! But it’s okay, I’m missing an eye and an arm so we’ll call it even, hmm? But I guess it’s not really even. Sisters share everything, right? And there’s some information I’ve been waiting patiently to give you." Terezi’s eyes narrowed slightly at that remark, unsure what information could possibly be given to her—still, it was Vriska, and while her intelligence wasn’t on par with Terezi’s, her ability to pick up information and turn people against each other was. She knew the best solution was to leave it alone, but the biting curiosity was too much of a temptation. She wanted to escape, but she still wanted Vriska’s attention more, as if she’d regressed into a twelve year old all over again.

"Then give it to me," she tried to bite out, but once again the words turned into something softer, lacking the passion of anger she wanted to display and instead crumpling into something much weaker.

John had no idea what the information could have been, only that it would most likely make things worse at this point; Vriska never seemed interested in making things better between the two of them. Girls were so weird—if you hated someone, you avoided them, not deliberately headed to the city they were in to make things super awkward for your boyfriend who happened to be stuck in the middle of them—it was even dividing himself and Dave, and he couldn’t help but think if one of Vriska’s crewmates chose now to mutiny, John wouldn’t be overly protected, unless, he supposed, maybe Vriska protected him. But that wasn’t the point, the point was Vriska was making this whole thing way more complicated than it needed to be, but there was nothing he could do about it. Once the show had started, Vriska had to play it out until the end.

Karkat didn’t think he’d had a chance to slow down yet, trying to soak in all the new information like a sponge and almost wishing it was polite and possible to take out a book for notes, and maybe also for theories—but obviously it wasn’t. The way Terezi grew weaker and softer while Vriska grew louder and stronger unsettled him deeply, and now even Dave wasn’t doing much to help her, only having really succeeded in calming her down. He didn’t understand why she was just taking everything Vriska said—who cared if Terezi had taken Vriska’s eye and arm? She was a criminal and that was what criminals deserve, and wasn’t that what Terezi believed?

Mostly, he wished he could just tug on Terezi’s arm and lead her away from here, away from Vriska and her poisonous words that turned the great Terezi Pyrope soft. But he knew that no matter what he did, Terezi wouldn’t move. She’d spent her life searching for Vriska again, she must have been filled to the brim with unsaid thoughts, questions that she wanted answers to, and Vriska knew this, dangling them over her head and just out of reach. Terezi wasn’t going to walk away when Vriska was offering her new information, and as much as Karkat himself was curious, he didn’t expect it to be anything that could ever help Terezi feel any better, or come to terms with what had happened. But he was fairly sure that if he was the one who pulled her away when Vriska was offering what she wanted, she would come to resent him for it, angry that she could have had her answers if the Dunmer hadn’t interfered. The only thing he could do was let this play out, although he did move closer to Terezi, hoping Dave wouldn’t toss him out of the way again; at least if she needed comfort, he could try, even if maybe Dave would beat him to the punch.

The Dunmer moving closer to Terezi caught Vriska’s attention—she wasn’t exactly sure what he was planning on doing, but he’d seemed as useless as Dave so far. Re-affirming her dominance over Terezi, Vriska stepped closer and clearly moved as if she was going to her. She snorted at the two of them tensed up, knowing that they were essentially useless. On the other hand, Terezi only seemed to swallow, probably pretending to be more confident than she actually was. Vriska smirked at the prospect as she reached out for behind Terezi’s neck, sickly pleased when the Redguard allowed her. Her fingers pushed down her neck, smirking wider as Terezi shivered. Vriska easily retrieved what she was looking for, fingers sliding across the chain to bring Terezi’s necklace out. “Thought so,” she hummed, dropping the pendant back against Terezi’s chest and taking a step back.

"You’re so naive Pyrope; you always have been," Vriska sighed, burdened with the weight of having to break the woman’s happy little world of fantasy. It was hard to know that she would, once again, be hated for such a responsibility, but she had always tried to help Terezi as much as possible. "Isn’t it just strange how your mother was never around? Even the most high ranked in the Legion were aimlessly walking through Solitude aaaaaaaall the time. Who cares if some Legion crony has some dumb necklace? She wasn’t the only one—but she was the only one who had a sword that belonged to the Blades. She was the one going after a pirate that had ties with the Thalmor. The Legion don’t touch the Thalmor, Terezi," she whispered, pleased that she could see the woman’s breathing increase. "The Thalmor supported the Legion."

"I don’t know what you’re babbling about," Terezi managed to hiss, regaining control of herself now that it was her mother’s reputation coming under fire. She would have stood and let Vriska say what she wanted about herself all day, but her family was a different matter and she wouldn’t stand idly by as Vriska started rambling about unrelated matters to a woman who was greater than Vriska would ever be.

"That’s right, you don’t," Vriska leered, especially now that Terezi was fighting back. "It’s sort of funny really! You hold the woman in such high regard and yet you don’t know anything about her. I pity you as her daughter."

Terezi’s composure instantly broke again as soon as the words were out of Vriska’s mouth, barely managing to force an expletive out before she was trying to murder the Imperial again. She managed to get a hit on her this time, with Vriska having expected her to miss. “You’re such a brat,” she hissed back, barely able to keep Terezi’s hands off her throat again. Luckily Dave decided to step in again, harshly pulling Terezi back and leaving her nails to scrape across Vriska’s neck as she was removed.

While Dave was bigger than Terezi, it didn’t mean she was small or weak in comparison and trying to calm her down was impossible a second a time. The whole thing had been a mistake, and he regretted ever thinking that things could have gone okay—it hadn’t been worth the risk, and next time he was going to have to say no to John, although the prospect of that happening looked slim. The best he could do was pull her out of the docks, not risking another chance with Vriska and sure that John wouldn’t move from there in the first place. Terezi still wasn’t happy with that idea, struggling against Dave as he dragged the two of them away, sighing at the steps that led back up to Windehelm.

Karkat followed wordlessly as Dave dragged Terezi away, only glancing once over his shoulder at the pirate and the Jarl’s son, curious as to why Dave seemed fine leaving them alone together—even if Terezi was important to him, protecting John was his responsibility and duty. But at the end of the day, it wasn’t that important to him, keeping a close distance with the two Redguards and trying to tune out whatever Dave was muttering to her, already annoyed enough by the way he spoke even normally, let alone when it was the best he could muster to help Terezi.

"C’mon, you’re all squirmy like a slaughterfish in brine. I didn’t know Pyropes threw tantrums like sea snakes. You’ve got the teeth for it, where are the fins? Not that you’d be able to hold a sword with them," Dave rambled, slightly unsure how to resolve the situation but always sure how to talk shit. It seemed his voice had quietened her down a little, enough to kick her feet against Dave until he let her back onto the ground. It was awkward to know how to deal with her crying, letting a hand fall against the small of her back as they walked back up the stairs in almost-silence—only broken by her sobs and the sound of their feet, joined by Karkat’s. The sound caused guilt to Dave, knowing that he’d known about John dating Vriska and had kept it from her—and she wouldn’t ever accept his reasons why. Terezi wasn’t strong enough to face Vriska, and their encounter had proved that. He hadn’t mentioned it because he knew that it would have ruined her—he’d kidded himself otherwise when John had begged him, but it was apparent now that he should have argued his instinct more, rather than being swayed by his need for John to respect him.

Once they reached the alleyways of Windhelm, Terezi seemed to stop moving. The weight of the situation in general started to pull her down further, curling inwards on herself as she crouched further towards the floor. Everything had happened in a blur, and an emotional blur at that. She had no idea what Vriska had insinuated, but the things she’d said had hurt and she didn’t know how to fix them—she knew she knew her mother best, despite what Vriska was saying. It hurt that Vriska still wanted Terezi to hurt—as much as the Redguard tried to hate her, she never really got around to saying anything that was on par with what Vriska had.

The situation was putting Dave in a difficult spot, knowing that Terezi needed more comfort but being unable to provide it himself—it was his job and duty to protect John, and he wasn’t sure how much he trusted Vriska, even if she had yet to harm the Nord. “Terezi, I have to go. I can’t leave John with V—with her,” he tried to explain, torn between two loyalties that were hard to pick, he didn’t even want to. “But, Karkat is still here, right cutie pie?” Dave nudged Karkat, at least trying to leave someone in his place if he was going to abandon her in the streets of Windhelm. “Go to Candlehearth, forget about this: forget about Solstheim.” He tried to reinforce, needing to know she wouldn’t do anything rash. “What she said didn’t mean anything,” he sighed, but the unspoken ‘probably’ hung in the air—even if he didn’t want it to.

Karkat had never seen Terezi like this, and to say it worried him would have been an understatement. He’d been able to pinpoint for a while that there was more to Terezi’s relationship with Vriska than the Dragonborn had let on, more than just a cat and mouse chase between a criminal and justice, but he’d never expected an encounter between them to go how it did, and it twisted his gut in the worst way when he recalled the way Terezi had let Vriska do as she pleased to her. She'd spoken cruel words that Terezi had quietly accepted, and she’d let the Imperial touch where she was vulnerable and break down her armor without argument. He didn’t know what had happened between them years ago, and even with the new information he’d learned that he’d tried to greedily soak up like a sponge, he couldn’t be sure what was true, and what Vriska had embellished and twisted to set guilt heavy in Terezi’s stomach and make her weak and submissive—regardless of the truth, it made the Dunmer anger to see that treatment with her.

It hurt to see the Dragonborn falter to the point where she couldn’t keep moving, simply curling up in the streets of Windhelm to cry, and he didn’t know what he could do about it, aware how ineffective he’d been back at the docks in comparison to Dave—but then said Redguard was excusing himself, and Karkat nearly hissed at the petname he was given, tensing as Dave nudged him and not offering him a reply one way or the other. Still, Dave’s advice was advice he agreed with, even if he didn’t want to return to the inn and spend more time in this wretched city, and once the housecarl was gone, Karkat moved to crouch beside Terezi and meet her at eye-level.

"Hey, hey, shhh," he tried to soothe, his hands moving to her shoulders to offer some support, still unsure of the boundaries between them and what was and wasn’t off limits. "Don’t cry, Terezi," he pleaded with her, deciding his feelings had to take the backburner for now and focusing simply on trying to calm her, his hands moving down from her shoulders to her hands, giving them a light squeeze. "C’mon, it’s freezing out here, let’s get somewhere warm and then we can rest." Even if he wasn’t sure he’d made progress on calming her, at the very least, she rose with him, and he led her back through the icy streets to Candlehearth.

Getting a room was a challenge—Elda Early-Dawn was another of the Nords who would rather his kind went elsewhere, and even when he politely tried to get her attention, she deliberately ignored him in favor of other customers. Of course, the treatment his people received was always infuriating, but now Terezi was being made a victim of it too, and Karkat became less patient and less polite, earning a rise in the price of a room from Elda when she finally decided to acknowledge him. Too exhausted to put up a fight, Karkat paid for their overpriced bedroom and led Teri back to it, closing the doors behind them to allow her privacy.

Unfortunately, a warm room in an inn was not a cure-all by any means, and he hurried to try and calm her again when it was evident she was still upset. Slowly trying to work out a battle plan that didn’t cross the boundaries they had set was too tedious—and he fell to instinct, letting his hands rest on her arms again, giving her a light squeeze in an effort to comfort her. He floundered for a moment, wanting to wipe her tears away but unsure if that crossed the boundaries—and regardless of trying not to make this about his feelings, he couldn’t help but succumb to his own nerves on this. But her tears were still falling, and he wanted that to stop, and so he slid one hand away and moved to her cheek, gliding his index finger along her cheekbone to wipe the tears away.

It was terrifying for Terezi to think that she wasn’t sure who to trust—the number of people she did was small enough, without having to feel betrayed by Dave and John. It made her chest feel tighter, panicking against her rib cage until she felt constricted against herself. But then Karkat was talking to her, hands touching her and she didn’t flinch away from him. She felt simultaneously better and worse when he moved his hands to her cheeks, leaning into his touch but feeling guilty about it at the same time. It only seemed to add to her confusion, crying harder as he fussed about her more.

Karkat nearly flinched when she leaned into his hand, almost forgetting that was a positive reaction, but she was still crying just as hard as before and his chest felt tight with the stress of not knowing how to console her, almost wishing Dave was still here at this point, jealousy aside—at least he’d been able to make her feel better once so far, which certainly won out against his current score. “Terezi,” he whined, moving his other hand up to her face and cupping her cheeks, sliding his thumbs to wipe her tears. “C’mon, it’s okay, it’s okay, shhh.” At a loss, he moved a bit closer, resting his forehead against hers for a few seconds before he pulled away again, to get a better look at her face and gauge he reactions to things and if he was doing any good. “It’s gonna be okay.”

She didn’t even have it in her to feel self-conscious as Karkat began cupping her face properly—too absorbed in her own grief to pay any more attention to what he was doing. Still, she felt his forehead come to rest against hers and it was nice, at least until he moved away again. As if on impulse, she uncurled her arms from around herself, opening up and having her hands tug on Karkat’s sleeves instead. Pretending she didn’t want him or help at all was pretty much impossible, and if forsaking her pride meant that he’d offer her some more comfort, then it was a hundred times better than crying alone.

She easily slid up against him, hands repositioning to curl up into the pockets of his armor while her face pressed up against his shoulder, eventually dropping into the space between there and his neck. Despite how much she wanted to compose herself and stop crying, it was far easier said than done. At least his comfort seemed to be constant throughout it, hand rubbing circles against her back that she became more and more aware of—trying to force her breathing to match his rhythm.

Slowly but surely, it seemed to work, as long as she didn’t think about Dave or Vriska or her mother. Her sobs quietened down into hitches, body stopping its shaking and mind becoming more and more aware of how gross she was probably making his neck feel. She slowly pulled her face away from him with uncertainty, hands rubbing at her face before she dropped them back onto Karkat’s armor again. “I don’t—” she began, trying to find something to say that would make things better. “I don’t cry,” she pathetically settled on, as if it would pull back any shred of dignity she’d had beforehand.

Karkat’s face felt hot as she moved closer to him, glad she was accepting his comfort, though it didn’t seem to cease her crying immediately. He moved his hands to adjust as she moved closing, tracing patterns, desperate to soothe her and stop her tears. Gradually, she began to calm down, Karkat sighing into her hair with relief as her tears subsided and her body stopped shivering. She leaned away from him and he tensed uncertainly, hoping she wasn’t upset with him for some reason, though no real logical reason could present itself—still, it was always possible her pride had kicked back in and she didn’t want to have to curl up like a child in his arms anymore.

When she finally got some words out, Karkat smiled, moving a hand to wipe at the bits of tears she’d missed. “Of course not,” he agreed, regardless of the clear state of what had just occurred between them. His hands lingered a bit too long on her face, and as soon as he realized it, he pulled them away, suddenly unsure where exactly he could put them. Flustered, he tried to find a place for his hands before awkwardly settling them on hers, knowing it probably wasn’t the best place for them but too embarrassed to move them again.

He tried to remind himself that this wasn’t about him and his stupid, pointless crush on her, that it was about making her feel better, and to his credit, at the very least, she had stopped crying. He gave her hands a light squeeze, eyes falling for a moment before he looked back at her, offering a tentative smile. “Do you—um, feel any better?” he managed, sort of regretting the stupid way the question sounded to someone who’d been sobbing, but he wasn’t sure what else to say without pushing her back into an upset state. “I mean… are you okay now?”

Terezi let out a breath of an almost laugh as Karkat agreed with her, aware that it had been a silly statement and even sillier to agree to. It also provided some kind of action that wasn’t so focused on her face, as Karkat’s hands had found their way back there again. She knew her face had risen in temperature from crying, but there was uncertainty about whether the Dunmer was keeping it warm. Now that she was more aware of what was happening, Terezi noticed that his hands stayed there longer than was strictly necessary, and suddenly she tried to become more aware of what he was doing. His hands moved from her face to her hands, and that seemed a little unnecessary too—sure she was still upset, but she probably could have got up and ignored it to return everything back to normal.

"No," she simply replied, not seeing a reason to lie about it. While she had stopped crying, that didn’t mean she felt better about anything at all. She almost felt akin to sobering up, and the more clear-headed she got, the worse her stomach twisted with the thoughts of what had just happened. The only thing it didn’t hurt to think about seemed to be Karkat, his hands offering a distraction from having to acknowledge how twisted everything had become in a matter of minutes. "You wouldn’t think that I enjoy privacy with how public my affairs keep becoming," she shrugged, swallowing down the emotion that threatened to boil back over again.

Even if she hadn’t expected things to end up the way they had, Terezi was glad that Karkat had stayed. Things between them had improved recently, with the arguments they had being about her welfare instead of her slitting his throat. That thought made her cringe, instead moving away from it and focusing on some positives. She was quickly assuming that maybe Karkat was a touchy kind of person, especially with how his hands kept staying on any one part of her body instead of falling back against himself.

Terezi’s ‘no’ was a bit discouraging, but he understood. He supposed when he’d asked he’d meant more along the lines of, was she okay enough not to cry again, but not wanting to directly bring up what had just happened and risk setting her off again, he choose to stay silent. After a moment, she pulled her hands away, and Karkat retreated his own to rest on his legs, ignoring the tinge of disappointment he felt at losing the contact.

That seemed to be enough of a justification for her to place her own hands on his face, admittedly there were no tears to catch but it would be a lie to say she wasn’t interested in the depth of his face—along with showing gratitude. She brushed her thumbs across his cheekbones with intrigue, happier to concentrate on Karkat rather than her own issues. The nervous rattle to her stomach was also certainly better than the twisting guilt and mapping out the features of the man she had romantic feelings for wasn’t a terrible distraction. She dropped her forehead against his in gratitude, hands not as heavy on his face as she hesitated over removing them completely. ”Thanks,” she mumbled, the two of the seemingly coming full circle with their administrations to one another.

It quickly became clear to Karkat why Terezi had moved her hands, freezing under her touch as he felt her hands on his face. He opened his mouth to ask what she was doing, but thought better of it and let his lips fall closed again, focusing on keeping himself calm and his face from warming, though he didn’t think that was really a thing people could assert willpower over—it was still nice to think if he thought hard enough about it, maybe she wouldn’t feel his cheeks warm up. The gesture seemed affectionate, even too affectionate considering the circumstances, and it confused him, until it finally clicked into place that she could’ve been using her hands to get a closer look at him, a better view than her blurry eyes could offer maybe, since she was mostly tracing across his bones.

He tensed again when she leaned towards him, her forehead coming to rest against his own and he was stuck tense for half a second before he let himself relax, nervous with how close they were and how close they were toeing the line between platonic and romantic, and it was hard, almost, to just relax and let himself enjoy it when their relationship was so perplexing to him. But her hands were still touching his face, and he could feel the warmth of her breath as she thanked him, and he sighed, not managing to get out a word just yet, pressing back with his forehead lightly in some strange sort of way to let her know the gesture was accepted.

Finally, he managed a shrug, although chances were she wouldn’t see or feel it anyway so it was a bit pointless to have even wasted his effort on. “You don’t need to thank me,” he murmured, keeping his eyes low to avoid eye contact, which would surely fluster him with how things were at the moment. “Obviously I was going to try to help you if you were upset,” but as soon as he’d spoken the words, he remembered how useless he’d been at calming her from her anger, and how Dave probably would’ve been able to do what he’d done better if he didn’t have other duties. “Sorry I’m not better at it,” he muttered, giving a slight shrug as he did.

It was hard to ignore the light flutter in Terezi’s stomach as Karkat pressed his forehead back against her. The moment felt far more intimate than it should have, and she was beginning to jump from one mess of confusion to the next. Her hands fell from Karkat’s face as he started talking—allowing him to speak easier but also because she was starting to wonder how far she could overstep her boundaries. It was probably best that she had removed herself from him, because she froze up at his next words. Her mind raced again, now fully preoccupied with what was happening. It was hard not to put his word out of context, but they were right there and they seemed to mean so much. Although Terezi had good friends, it was very hard to place times when they’d stopped to help her—she was the one who was trying to fix other people, and rarely allowed anyone into genuinely getting to know her: content enough and never really seeing a reason to have qualms with it.

He genuinely cared, and it almost shocked her. Her body posture fell back from Karkat’s, mouth slightly parted as she processed what was happening. Although his words were probably meant to be received as platonic, it wasn’t very easy for Terezi to accept that. Every time she knew she was being romantically dubious with him, Karkat would mirror her—such as the last time she’d apologized or when she’d talked him into kissing her. Maybe she was taking it in the way she wanted to because she was upset, and it was nice to find comfort in the fantasy that he cared for her as more than he was obliged to. At the end of the day, he was probably just as confused as she was—if not more.

"Obviously," she chuckled in slightly bewildered repetition, mostly to herself. She ended up smiling lopsidedly, head facing towards their laps until something else clicked. Her hands reached for his face again, but softer this time, as if she was gauging her reaction as well as his own. Terezi wasn’t sure if it was impulse or patience that dictated her next moves, but she wasn’t focused on anything that wasn’t the Dunmer in front of her. She brought her face towards Karkat’s and briefly swept over his features; it was much easier to make out the snowberries of his eyes when she was closer and it somehow made it feel safer. Maybe later on, if she really wanted to, she could blame the sense of security as to why she moved even closer, breath held as she pressed her lips to his.

After a brief moment of hesitation, Karkat’s hands moved from his lap to her shoulders, pressing to pull her a bit closer—but it was hard to think or focus on anything when all his attention was drawn to the feeling of her lips moving against his own. He could barely believe this was happening—and just as soon as he realized how unbelievable it was, it clicked into place that maybe it was sort of unbelievable.

The hands that had been pulling her closer shifted slightly, pushing her back now, and he turned his head away, sighing shakily as he determined the appropriate thing to do now, which wasn’t at all what he wanted to do. “Wait, um,” he swallowed, trying to figure out the best way to word what he was trying to say. “Maybe we shouldn’t—maybe we shouldn’t do this.” It was almost painful to say, but the reality was that Terezi was in a vulnerable place right now, having just been abandoned by someone she almost definitely still had feelings for and having had to deal with Vriska, and Karkat was likely rebound meant to distract from that. Aside from his own feelings, he didn’t want to make things worse for her, acting on something she only felt because she was miserable at the moment. “I mean, because… you’re upset and you’re… probably not thinking clearly, I don’t want you to do something you’d regret. I mean—I,” he bit his lip, awkwardly deciding between being more honest or keeping quiet about his feelings, but just outright rejecting her didn’t seem like a good plan in her current state, and it wasn’t true anyway—“wouldn’t um, mind… if you—ugh, you know, if you want to, when you’re… in,” he groaned, moving to rake a hand through his hair anxiously. “I don’t know what I’m saying anymore.”

Having Karkat pull away wasn’t a great sign for Terezi, and her stomach twisted from harmless nerves to outright anxiousness. She was concerned that she’d pushed things too far—that she’d completely read him wrong in the first place, or that he’d decided he didn’t like her at all. Her head sunk slightly as he said they shouldn’t be kissing, awkward humiliation bubbling up as she tried to move away from him. However, he continued talking and her eyes narrowed at what Karkat was saying, feeling instantly defensive at the insinuation she wasn’t thinking clearly. “I’m not some emotional wreck,” she argued, insulted that he’d assumed that in the first place. ”I know what I want,” she said with force, even if she wasn’t exactly sure how good of an idea it was to actively pursue it.

With Karkat basically stammering out permission for Terezi to try again, she let her hands fall behind his head, fingers weaving into the hair that fell there as she regained her position on his lips. She sighed softly as he reciprocated, grip tightening on the back of his neck. Although kissing Karkat was the least expected outcome from the day, it was certainly the best that had happened. Ignoring the fact her pulse was picking up and she couldn’t focus on a thought, it was relaxing to focus on Karkat and how he felt, instead of the distress she’d been through earlier. She tried not to get too greedy with it, simply letting her lips react to his without pushing things too far; she felt comfortable with him, which was a stark contrast from how thing had been when she’d first met him.

Karkat eventually pulled away and Terezi froze to make sure she hadn’t messed anything up—relaxing again when his forehead came up against hers again. It was obvious now that he liked her, and she liked him—but it wasn’t as if she could say that aloud: their relationship wouldn’t be classified as healthy at all, and she could only cringe at the thought of Kanaya killing her for leading Karkat on or emotionally abusing him. She tried not to shift uncomfortably, thoughts stuck on a hitch that made it impossible to enjoy anything with Karkat for longer than a minute. “I want to be honest with you,” she firmly told him, knowing it was impossible to look him in the eye but still trying to position herself so it was as sincere as possible. “I know almost everything about you but I don’t think you really know anything about me. If you want to know, that is.”

Karkat didn’t miss the way Terezi tensed when he pulled away from her, pressing his forehead to hers in an effort to show her she hadn’t done anything wrong so she wouldn’t be so nervous. It was so strange to think the girl who had taken him from Riften and tried to kill him on the 7,000 Steps had become… whatever they were to each other, whatever she was to him, he wasn’t sure how to classify it—but he knew it was something good. He’d never expected this outcome, even when he’d realized he liked her, even when she’d forced him to kiss her in Windhelm, in what he’d assumed had only been her picking on him, he’d never thought it might actually mean something.

He straightened slightly when she pulled away, and sentences like ‘I want to be honest with you,’ always sounded scary, no matter the context. And this context could be great, or it could be terrible, based on what had happened so far—but she continued, and it was more clear it was about her past, and who she was now, and considering Karkat had given her a personal tour of where his family members had died all across Windhelm, it was certainly fair to say he knew little about her in comparison—and what he did know, he’d had to piece together through her conversations with others, mostly.

Still, talking about her mother had riled her up before, with Vriska, and he didn’t want her to get upset again. He moved his hands to find hers, giving them a light squeeze—which he was okay with doing for once, feeling slightly more sure of their relationship and ignoring the nerves that surfaced whenever he considered touching her. “You don’t have to tell me about it,” he started, despite his curiosity about her story and her life before. “I mean… I don’t…” he trailed off, rethinking the sentence when he thought about how she’d reacted to him trying to be more gentle due to her current emotional state. “I’d like to hear about it, as long as you’re okay with telling me,” he managed, looking up to meet her eyes with a tentative smile.

Having Karkat agree to hear it was a weight off Terezi’s shoulder. It wasn’t as if she needed to talk about it for her own sake—she rarely liked talking about it and she wasn’t about to use Karkat as free therapy—but it was because he was interested, and it mean that they could maybe work towards making things more even between them. Things probably wouldn’t change automatically, but toning down her superiority complex so they were on the same page would probably help. Plus, maybe it meant she’d be able to face Vriska with more confidence—surely she couldn’t get any more upset about things if she finished being an idiot over it now. She appreciated it when his hand slid into hers, almost smiling if it wasn’t for the knowledge of what she was about to talk about.


	21. windhelm vi

"I was born and brought up in Solitude," she began, starting with the facts that were easiest. "You already know that both my parents were in the Legion. I never met my father, but my mother ranked Legate," she recalled proudly, feeling more confident now that Vriska wasn’t around to undermine her mother’s achievements. "My childhood was fine; we had money, I was well educated, well fed and I had best friends. I mean, until Tavros was paralyzed. I think… most things were different after that point. I don’t know. Even though Tavros didn’t want any more trouble, we couldn’t let Vriska get away with it but—I told Aradia I’d handle it instead of her," she trailed off, regret still burning hard so many years later. "Apparently it just escalated between the two of them. They started fighting over it and Aradia died. Vriska came and got me to come see her body but we couldn’t find it again. She probably rotted out in the woods," Terezi sighed, tired and bitter and always confused as to how they’d lost the body in the first place. It wasn’t as if Aradia could have survived, although Terezi always wondered about whether she’d crawled away somewhere and then died.

"Vriska said it was probably karma: see Aradia used to perform necromancy on the stuff we killed—that’s why I started having doubts about Wuunferth." It was difficult to fill Karkat in on as much as her life as possible without expanding too much—Aradia being a necromancer had influenced a lot of her choices later in life, and allowed her a better tolerance for those who practiced it; which was a key part of her relationship with Dave. Deciding to get the parts with her friends over first before even attempting her mother, Terezi tried to move onto Vriska. "Eventually it was just me and Vriska left. She called us sisters, I guess I kind of liked it. I dunno. I don’t really know how I felt about her," she shrugged, lying slightly but more for the sake of herself rather than Karkat; admitting that she’d probably had a crush on Vriska wasn’t going to make the situation any easier on her.

"But then… my mother was murdered, and I couldn’t pretend Aradia’s death had never happened. So I confronted Vriska, and we argued—badly," she persevered, although her fingers gripped onto Karkat a little tighter. "She was always too good at spells that shouldn’t be used—I hate illusion magic," she spat, partly because Redguards were brought up to believe that way, but mostly because of her mother’s end. "She got too close to me and ended up making it so I didn’t run, so when she cast magelight it just, ended up in my face. I panicked—I couldn’t fight, I used to wrestle Vriska but we never turned on each other like that, I’d never been in a fight before but… I knew how to make fires with magic so I just—I didn’t—" she breathed out slowly, the memory still as fresh as it had been all those years ago. "I burnt her. It was like the whole side of her just, went up in flames. I guess maybe it was her karma… but I’m the one who got stuck with that being the last thing I ever saw, or properly smelt and tasted. It’s horrible. People don’t—they shouldn’t burn," Terezi shuddered, hands tightening around Karkat’s as if it would replace the fact she couldn’t shut her eyes and have the images go away.

Terezi’s story was more morbid than Karkat had even expected, and he hadn’t had high hopes for it to begin with. He was learning a lot about Terezi though, as well as the pirate who’d interrupted their attempts to get to Raven Rock. It was almost terrifying to know the girls had taken things so far—Tavros’ paralysis had sounded frightening enough on its own, up until Terezi mentioned how Aradia had died. It made his childhood seem tame in comparison; sure, he’d lived in a slum and dealt with racism on a daily basis but at least he’d had friends that didn’t kill each other. He wasn’t sure what he could even say to her, returning her squeezes with light squeezes of his own and running his thumb along her fingers.

"You did what you had to do to survive, right?" he offered, knowing it wasn’t much comfort but unsure what else he could possibly say to make her feel any better. "Sometimes, people have to do… less than great things to stay alive, you know? You don’t think I always wanted to grow up to be a thief, do you?" he teased, hoping some humor might diffuse the situation a little. Still, it was a serious situation, and he didn’t want her to feel like he was brushing her off so easily. "I just don’t think you deserve to spend your life feeling guilty about something that happened when you were young. She’s dangerous—she was dangerous then, too, right? If she did what she did to Tavros, and she killed Aradia, she could easily have killed you too." That wasn’t a particularly positive thought to humor, his grip on her hands tightening a bit. "You shouldn’t let her have that power over you," he grumbled, even more annoyed now that he had the backstory, as he thought of the way Terezi had shrunk to Vriska, stayed submissive and let Vriska basically bully her around. "Not over what you did to her."

Terezi didn’t respond to Karkat’s thoughts over her relationship with Vriska, not having told him that for validation over what she’d done. There was always something more Terezi could have done, and it was her own fault for not doing so. His words made her uncomfortable, so she ignored them as if they hadn’t happened—which was a defensive tactic she was very well versed in. “So then I left Solitude. I didn’t get very far though; I had no survival skills. I guess it was a good thing I enjoyed eating while I could because I was pretty much starving all the time after that. Everything was too fast for me,” she huffed, able to see the amusing side of things now that she was talking about lighter topics. “Apart from goats. Goats are so stupid that I almost feel bad about how many I’ve eaten,” Terezi started grinning, giggling a little under her breath. “Somehow I wasn’t killed or put in an orphanage. I was too prideful to beg and I ignored most people so I didn’t really get much attention paid to me. I stuck to the roads and eventually I ended up in Whiterun—which, as you already know, is where I met Dave, Rose and John,” she sighed, not exactly eager to talk about the next part of her life either—but it was certainly easier than what she’d spoken about before.

"Dave basically took a shine to me, probably through his sister complex, and fed me and taught me how to fight until I could look out for myself. For all we mock argue and real argue, Dave was great to me," she smiled sheepishly before it quickly twisted into a frown with what had just happened between them. "Anyway, Rose is… well to put it bluntly she’s a necromancer—that’s not really an occupation that goes down well with our beliefs and Rose and Dave come from, what’s probably, the most traditional Redguard family in Skyrim. The Pyrope name doesn’t hold much but the Lalonde does, I think they feel they have a lot of heritage on their shoulders; they basically do. So Rose drank a lot and Dave blamed himself a lot. I spent most of my time helping him, trying to emotionally support him how he was physically supporting me. But like I said, he was traditional. He wanted to stay safe and look after Rose, find a paying job as a blacksmith—I was bored and wanted to explore; I wanted to be more than just blind. As you can see from the lasting tension between us, Dave didn’t like the idea of that. He’s scared he’ll lose more family to the Far Shores, where as I only have mine waiting there for me. So we broke up and I left."

"There’s not really any specific events after that; I just continued travelling. I took paid jobs or unpaid ones—I didn’t mind, I was more interested in the justice than the pay, sometimes I’d just do it in return for food. I mostly stuck to the east though, I only ever really indulged something outside of working by visiting the College; I liked trying out all the different inns though," she mused, unable to deny that she was partial to wine. "Then I ended up in Riften, and I caught a man who is terrible at his job and far better at his natural talents," she smiled, pulling one of her hands away from his to flick his forehead. "You know everything since then, so there’s not much point recounting what you’ve already experienced."

Karkat tensed up as she spoke about the Dave portion of the story, certainly less gruesome than the earlier parts but still nothing he wanted to hear. Every time she spoke about Dave privately, it felt like there was something unfinished between them, and he knew they’d only broken up over different values, not because they didn’t feel anything for each other anymore. Her eyes lit up when she received his letters, the instant Dave had asked her back to Whiterun they’d gone, and Dave had picked her up and spun her around. They barely even acted like exs, and it was all infuriating to Karkat. And he knew if Dave hadn’t messed up, he’d be the one with Terezi now—and he didn’t miss the way Terezi smiled when she said Dave was great to her, either. It was hard not to feel like some sort of replacement until she and Dave figured out how to work things out when she spoke about him, and it forced him to fall silent for the rest of her story.

He managed a smile again when she flicked him, opening his hand to accommodate hers again when she was through with the physical abuse and maybe the verbal abuse, although there was maybe a compliment of sorts in there, though he wasn’t sure what ‘natural talents’ he even had. There were still questions he had for her though, things he’d been wondering a long time but hadn’t had the guts to say back when ‘sharing is caring’ wasn’t a rule of their relationship. “Okay, I have a question,” he started, grateful when she nodded permission for him to ask it. “What’s the story with my dad’s necklace? Like—I know you said it was personal and if you don’t want to say, I understand… but I haven’t met many human races who wear it, who care about what he cared about. Even the Legionnaires, the closest he had to allies, most of them are fighting for peace on Skyrim, so they don’t evoke the Thalmor’s wrath, not because the Jarl of Windhelm is a racist asshole and wants to force his morals onto all the other holds. Khajiit and Argonians and even Bosmer are always happy to support it, but, there aren’t a lot of humans who cared. Or at least, I never met many… And I guess part of what I’m asking is, how did you even know about my dad, growing up in Solitude and all?”

"Ah," she first responded, hand twitching as if it was going to move to the necklace on impulse but managing to decide against it. She brewed in silence for a small while, trying to decide how to begin talking about her mother without making a scene about it again. "It was my mother’s," she started, seeing as slow and steady looked to be winning the race here. "I don’t really know where or when she heard about your dad, I just know she was really into the cause—like, whole life dedicated into it. She brought me up on his values, basically making sure I wasn’t a racist asshole," she smiled half-heartedly, chest starting to tighten. "She was always resentful of people who didn’t do anything, or the ones who oppressed others into silence. I was… too young to really understand what was happening. I didn’t understand a lot of what she said but I really tried to. She pretty much thought your dad was the best thing to happen to Skyrim."

Although Terezi was speaking about her mother, there were things to be learned about Karkat’s father from this conversation as well. He couldn’t believe his father’s beliefs had spread so far, and Solitude was a nice city with fewer minorities, most of the elves living there Altmer and most everyone else some sort of human race, aside from the odd Argonian. Despite it being home to the Legion and therefore, a place his father had actively visited, he had never excepted Solitude to care about anything a Dunmer living in the slums had said to the people of his neighborhood to keep them hopeful. He supposed, in some way, he shouldn’t have been surprised. He’d never understood his father’s rise to fame in Skyrim—when had anyone ever stopped to listen to a Dunmer before? But people carried the symbol of the Signless with them still now, and even if Terezi hadn’t necessarily believed as strongly as her mother, she still knew his name—hell, when Karkat described what had happened to his father she’d automatically known who he was. But he supposed that same sort of thing, his fame across Skyrim, had been what got him killed in the end, really.

"She always said the necklace was more important than her own life," Terezi sighed, still not fully understanding why but respecting her mother’s wishes enough not to question it too much. Just because she thought it was stupid didn’t mean her mother had, and it conflicted her to be judgmental over something that was about not being judgmental in the first place. "Maybe she knew what was coming, it was a strange thing to say to a ten-year old. I guess that’s the frustrating thing about Vriska—she’s right, I don’t understand. I can’t explain why it means so much because I don’t know and I can’t ask anyone: it was just me and her. Do you want to know what happened to her? It’s disgusting," she murmured, knowing it wasn’t the kind of story that left people feeling on a good note.

It was interesting to hear just how much Karkat’s father had meant to Terezi’s mother, that she thought his father was the best thing to happen to Skyrim, that she’d said the symbol of the Signless was more important than her own life, and he knew already how much her mother meant to Terezi, to the point where she seemed almost as big a fan of Kankri Vantas as she had been, despite her young age during his time. But it was clear the story was taking a darker turn, and he soothed his thumb along her fingers again, trying to offer some comfort to her. “You don’t have to tell me about it if you don’t want to,” he started, able to hear the way her voice shook as they only started to veer near the topic. “I’m… I am interested, but I don’t want you to have to talk about anything that upsets you, if you don’t want to,” he settled on, too invested in his curiosity to outright refuse, but at least giving her the option if she felt she needed to say silent on the matter.

"I guess fate has a great sense of humour, because I remember she spent a lot of time tracking this pirate—Mindfang. She was Vriska’s inspiration so like… ugh it sounds so stupid now. I’d pretend to be my mother and Vriska would be Mindfang and we’d fight, obviously Vriska had to win…" Terezi trailed off, finding another irony there that made her stomach turn. "Only she was dangerous, no one could ever get close to her because her illusion magic was so advanced—but my mother did it," she sadly smiled, unable to keep biting down the pride when it came to her. "She was going to be publicly executed and obviously I wanted to see my mother, so I went along even though she told me not to. Vriska didn’t show up and… well, it wasn’t as if I had any other friends who could walk at that point."

Her fingers curled tighter into Karkat’s hands, pushing harder against him than was probably comfortable. “I don’t… really remember much. It’s all a blur. One minute Mindfang was about to go down but then… everyone started going crazy. I’ve seen people attack each other but, it was different? They went for my mother, as if it was an organized mob. I couldn’t do anything, I was just one girl and the whole of Solitude had come out to watch. I was watching my neighbors, the people who looked after me while she was gone on business, and they were—they ended up—it was her on the block, not Mindfang,” Terezi eventually managed to get out, ignoring that her voice was started to waver. Although she would have liked it to end there, it didn’t and the sooner she could get it over with then the sooner she’d never have to tell Karkat about it again.

"But the necklace, she said I had to get the necklace if something happened because—it was more important. I didn’t know how long I had to get it and everyone was still creating panic while Mindfang left so I just—I climbed up and it was so, so so so gross. I tried not to look but I knew—she was still warm and it was horrible," she began to sob again, shaking against herself as she tried to compose herself in vain. "But I got it: I got it and I didn’t look back. And then it was all covered up—no one wanted to say they did it or admit such a thing could happen to such nice people in such a nice city, and I was too scared of them to say anything, so it never happened. They killed her and it never officially happened—they gave up on Mindfang too. It’s like she never existed and all I got from it is this stupid necklace that I had to go get from her dead corpse in the first place.” Terezi’s voice had gradually risen with anger as she’d gotten more and more worked up, making less coherent sense as she’d began rambling with emotions instead of the brief overview she’d been trying to go with.

Terezi’s story was even more horrid than she’d made it out to be—when Karkat’s mother had been found, he didn’t personally have to prepare her beaten corpse to be buried himself, and when his father had died, though his head had been mounted on a pike outside the Grey Quarter, he hadn’t had to search his father’s headless body for a stupid trinket and pull it off his bloody, still-warm corpse. The necklace’s importance confused him slightly; perhaps she was trying to protect his father? Maybe knowing he had supporters in such high places was dangerous for him, but in the end it hadn’t mattered, his own execution just a few years down the road. Unfortunately, the best he could do was guess; Terezi didn’t know why she’d had to retrieve the necklace, and it wasn’t as if her mother was still around to ask.

As Terezi grew more upset, Karkat shifted the way they sat, moving his hands from her hands and to her sides, pulling her closer and wrapping his arms around her, letting her curl against his chest. He murmured what he hoped were comforting words, apologizing that he’d asked and whatever condolences he could come up with while rubbing circles across her back. To be honest, he wasn’t sure what could be said to help—there was nothing he could say that would bring her mother back, and nothing that could take away the memories of what Terezi had had to do. So he did all he could do, which was keeping her close in his arms, pressing light kisses to her hair and forehead and murmuring that it would be okay.

For the second time that day, Terezi ended up curled against Karkat with no apparent control over her emotions. She easily accepted anything he offered, hardly in a position to be denying comfort or even be truly aware of what was happening. She pressed her face further and further against him, muffling as much of the noise as possible. Although most of what Karkat was saying was drowned out by her, it was nice to hear his voice and know he was there. As it was, she could only ever really remember crying in front of Dave once—it just wasn’t done for something so private to be shown to other people. Even if she’d probably cringe later, for the moment she couldn’t really feel terrible about pushing her issues onto Karkat—they were sort of even now, and it wasn’t as if she’d have to bring it up ever again.

Everything subsided at a slow pace, and while her her crying eventually stopped, it took longer than before for her body to stop hitching and the whole event just made her lethargic—so much so that she couldn’t even bring herself to be be embarrassed about the situation any more. Terezi sat against Karkat in silence while she gathered herself, eyes closing from how heavy they suddenly felt. The longer she did nothing, the more her thinking started to kick back in properly: realizing that she was still being an idiot while Vriska could still be out there. As much as she had many questions to ask Vriska, she didn’t know what they were—she didn’t know if she could handle the answers or the manipulation it took to get them in the first place. “I can’t face her,” Terezi groggily admitted, the words much quieter than her usual volume.

"You don’t have to," Karkat replied immediately, in no hurry to send Terezi back into Vriska’s clutches when the other was only going to play mind games and guilt-trip her. Sure, he wished Terezi could find it in her to stand up to Vriska—the things he’d said earlier hadn’t been for the sake of easing Terezi’s guilty conscious, he’d meant it when he said she’d done what she’d had to do, even if Terezi didn’t agree, or didn’t want to agree. Still, as much as he might wish otherwise, there was nothing he could do to change her mind, and whatever hold Vriska had on the Redguard wasn’t about to slip.

The fact of the matter remained that Karkat was not going to send Terezi back to Vriska, though fortunately, he doubted Vriska would turn up to bother them on her own; she seemed to be the type who preferred to watch others stumble helplessly into the trap she’d lain instead of actively pursuing them. “If you need information from her though, I can go get it on my own,” he offered, fairly certain Terezi wouldn’t accept his offer for a multitude of reasons—and he’d be lying if he said he wasn’t at least a little scared of Vriska, mostly only because he’d seen the power she had over Terezi. “Alternatively,” he sighed, voice dropping in annoyance, “we could make John get whatever information you feel you need from her, since this is all sort of his fault and he and her are apparently some… sort of thing.”

What Terezi wanted from Vriska wasn’t information per se, but more a sense of closure. She wasn’t sure how to achieve that at all, having stewed on her resentment over their broken friendship for so long that she’d lost sight of why she’d ever wanted to find her again in the first place. She’d told herself it was because Vriska was a criminal, but she knew there was more to it deep down. It was more a case that Terezi had many unspoken things left to say—things for Aradia, Tavros and herself. However much she needed to say them, she wouldn’t be able to until she could face Vriska without becoming submissive, and that wasn’t a problem that would suddenly resolve now.

That said, Vriska had hinted that she had information about her mother—something Terezi had been trying to ignore ever since. “I don’t think she has anything of use, she’s just baiting me,” Terezi sighed, not about to go send Karkat in her place—she had some pride, and getting others involved too deep into her business wasn’t going to be a thing that happened any time soon. “Even if she’s not, I don’t think I want to know. She just sounds like she’s trying to ruin my reputation of my mother and—I think—even if she’d done bad things, I wouldn’t want to know at this point,” she trailed off, knowing that it was a cowardly decision but nonetheless sticking to it. She didn’t think she’d be able to handle anything else today, and she certainly didn’t think she’d ever be able to think badly of the woman who had essentially become a god-like figure in her eyes.

"Okay," Karkat agreed, more than happy to keep Terezi here and away from the pirate lunatic. Still, he didn’t exactly agree with what Terezi believed of the situation—true, Vriska had made it sound like there was a deep, dark secret to Terezi’s mother, but nothing she’d said seemed particularly incriminating—rather, it seemed like she was implying Terezi’s mother was part of a particular organization, with no true sides to either the Legion or the Stormcloaks. But he would keep his guesses to himself, at least until Terezi was in a better state. The simplest thing could threaten to set her off as things were now, and he didn’t want to see her cry again.

"Listen," Karkat murmured, running his hand along her arm gently, "Why don’t you just rest for now, okay? You’re probably tired… I’ll stay with you just in case. C’mon, there’s beds here, it’s better than sleeping in a dusty corner like this, right?" he offered, not wanting to pull away too quickly and upset her.

Terezi sidelined the bed that Karkat was looking over, slightly uncomfortable with the prospect. “Too far,” she brushed it aside, letting her arm loosely wrap around his waist as she shifted into a more comfortable position. “I like the dusty corner.” More specifically, she liked Karkat being as close as he was—but they didn’t need to go into detail there. After kissing his cheek in gratitude again, Terezi dropped her head back against the crook of his neck and focused on the warmth that he radiated: trying to keep her thoughts anywhere but where they’d previously been. It was a little easy when she was so tired, unable to keep a coherent track of thought as she started to doze off against him.

Karkat’s face warmed slightly as Terezi pressed a kiss to it, considering insisting on her taking a bed, but in the end he couldn’t manage to—he didn’t want her to think he wanted her to go, he’d only figured she’d be more comfortable elsewhere. But she was warm against him, and even if he wasn’t sure what their relationship was anymore, he was glad just to have her so close. If she was truly comfortable sleeping in the dusty corner with him, then obviously he wasn’t going to argue, tightening his grip on her just slightly. Glad to see her asleep and relaxed, Karkat sighed, kissing her forehead as well before leaning back against the wall while he waited for the night to pass.

\---

Nothing really happened on the ship after that, with Vriska having assured that she wasn’t a bad pirate who was going to take over the ship—making sure to firmly explain how judgemental they were being. She spent most of her time with John, brushing off the incident with Terezi and trying to ignore the other Redguard that wouldn’t leave them alone for five minutes. It was very hard to stay on track with an idiot staring her out, but Vriska could act eighty eight times cooler than Dave could, she was just that good. Eventually the events of the day started to weigh on her mind, growing more and more frustrated that Terezi hadn’t cared about what she had to say. The Imperial had gone through a lot of trouble to make sure her suspicions were correct, all so they could make up again put silly grudges behind them. She managed to slip out while Dave and John had engaged in conversation over the Jarl’s affairs—trivial information in contrast to Vriska’s own connections. She was sure that Terezi and her Dunmer hadn’t gone too far, and it only took a brief bit of searching through Windhelm to locate them.

“Someone’s mighty cozy,” she commented, looking the pair up and down with her good eye. She’d recognized Karkat’s uniform, but had no need to comment on it, obviously he wasn’t worth much if she didn’t know who he was. Still, Terezi of all people wouldn’t be hanging around with a criminal—let alone cuddled up with one like some lovesick puppy. It was sort of gross, and almost distracted her from the whole reason she was down there.

Karkat should have known that things wouldn’t be so simple, tensing as soon as he heard Vriska speak but trying not to move too much—he didn’t want to wake Terezi to have her nearly face-to-face with the woman she least wanted to deal with right now. As comfortable and content as he’d been a few moments ago, he seriously wished Terezi had chosen the bed now, nervous that he was so much shorter than the Imperial from the floor—even shorter than usual, to be fair—and he couldn’t really access his weapons without forcing her to wake up and move. Unpredictable as she was, Karkat hoped he’d be all right from where he was, and decided if worse came to worst, he could probably still protect Terezi, even if he wouldn’t be able to defend himself so well. “What do you want?” Karkat ground out, eyes narrowing near slits as he looked up at the woman, wanting to make it very clear that despite barely knowing her, he didn’t like her and he wanted her to go away.

"How rude! I should be the one asking you that—she’s not exactly the kind of woman who hangs around with your type," Vriska sneered, her remark far from referring to Karkat’s race. He was agitating her already, acting as if he had more of a right to be there than she did, how pretentious could he get? Still, picking another fight wouldn’t bode over well with John—especially with Dave nagging in his face every five minutes. She could play nice, especially if it gave her the satisfaction of feeling superior to Karkat. Whether he would play nice with her was another story and it wasn’t as if she could be blamed if he didn’t.

Likewise, Karkat didn’t like the fact that Vriska knew about a part of Terezi that Karkat didn’t, even if it had just been summarized for him just a little while before, and he didn’t like the fact that having a past with Terezi made her feel superior or more entitled to being around Terezi. Clearly she’d blown her shot at that a long time ago, and from what he’d heard, Karkat saw no reason worth forgiving her. Still, it was clear getting annoyed would only please her, remembering how she’d laughed in Terezi’s face when the Redguard had shouted at her. “No, she isn’t,” Karkat agreed, shrugging the shoulder the Dragonborn wasn’t rested against. “She hasn’t hung around with my type since she stopped hanging around with you, to my understanding,” he added, deciding to remind her that being a pirate was just about the same as being a thief, just plus a boat.

Vriska barely batted an eyelid at Karkat’s words, mostly amused that he had such bite. Obviously he was over-estimating his importance in comparison to her own and it wouldn’t hurt to put a mouthy grunt back in his place. “And look how desperate she’s been for my attention ever since! I’m known in places I’ve never stepped foot in, although wasn’t I a blind Redguard last time? Noooooooo! I wasn’t!” She huffed, apparently raising her voice loud enough for Terezi shift slightly. Politely waiting for the girl to settle—as Vriska had been raised with manners and courtesy—she looked Terezi over once more with slight annoyance. “She thinks she’s such a goody two shoes but she kills and profits, just like we do; mommy’s little girl.”

Obviously Vriska had him there, but he wasn’t going to bother letting it phase him—or at least he wasn’t going to let her know it phased him, shrugging at her comment. “That’s true, she did use your name in the past. But we’ve been traveling together a while now and she hasn’t used it once since I showed up, so. I dunno.” He shrugged again, letting her infer whatever she chose from that. His eyes shifted to regard Terezi instead, half ensuring she was still sleeping peacefully and half hoping the lack of eye contact would agitate Vriska more. “But you’ve got a point; since you showed up she’s spent soooooooo much time with you, right?” And he tightened his grip on her slightly, for emphasis, just in case Vriska needed to be reminded who’s body she was huddled against.

With the Dunmer obviously uninterested in small talk, Vriska decided to get down to the reason why she’d slipped away in the first place. She retrieved an obviously worn journal, but hesitated about giving it to him. While Terezi seemed close to him, she didn’t know how close Karkat was to her—she wasn’t about to risk losing something so important to restoring their relationship to some thief who would probably fence it without Terezi knowing. “This is for Pyrope,” she clearly stated, holding up the journal so that he could see it but still refusing to give it to him.

He squinted at the book she displayed, wondering what exactly it was—he didn’t recognize the book, which immediately peaked his interest, but he wasn’t about to act like it was anything special, regardless of his curiosity. “If it’s for Terezi, I’ll give it to her when she wakes up,” he replied casually, extending his hand for the book. Noting her hesitance, he sighed, continuing. “Look, Terezi trusts me to hang on to her precious books for her literally all the time. I’ll give it to her when she wakes up but I’m not gonna bother her while she’s sleeping for some dusty old book.” To reinforce his point, he extended his hand again, hoping despite all odds she would simply give in and hand the book off to him without an argument.

Vriska also didn’t like the way Karkat spoke as if she was the intruder to the situation, when she’d been on the scene far longer than he had. What was with holding onto her books? Surely he was just being a brat there—why would she even keep books on her, other than to use as fuel for a fire? Still, it seemed that Karkat had no idea what she was holding and Vriska didn’t expect him to—he didn’t know Terezi and her mother like Vriska had, after all. “Dusty old book?” she raised her eyebrow, tutting at Karkat’s ignorance. “I’m sure Terezi will appreciate you saying that when she realizes what it is. After all, surely she must know what her late mother’s journal looks like—whoops, I mean smells like.”

Having redirected his attention to Terezi, he did his best not to react to Vriska’s grand reveal on what the book was—he knew how important it would be to Terezi, but he also knew she’d said she wasn’t sure she wanted to know the truth about her mother. Whether she wanted to read it or not, he doubted she liked the idea of it being in Vriska's possession. “Her mom’s old journal? Thanks, I’ll let her know when she wakes up,” he offered again, eyes still trained on Terezi though he watched Vriska from his peripherals. “You can set it down on the floor if you think my hands will sully it or something,” he shrugged, looking towards her but not at her face and nodding towards the floor before he turned back to regard Terezi.

Even if Vriska tried to act like Karkat wasn’t bothering her, the reality was that she was getting more and more competitive over Terezi—mostly out of her desire to be best, although some genuine concern for the Redguard probably factored in somewhere along the line. ”You know how many crimes are committed every day; I’m sure I could draw up a list of some that have happened around the same time the Dragonborn was around. Apparently she’s been very fond of Windhelm recently,” Vriska casually remarked, mostly to show Karkat that she wasn’t stupid—not to threaten him. But that changed when she began her next sentence, crouching down to his level and continuing with faked innocence. “It would be so unfortunate for Terezi if you started accumulating a bounty in every city—the Dragonborn assisting a thief? What a scandal! Their sordid love affair has shocked the trust out of our region’s hero. Poor Terezi would never have a reputation again, she’d be branded a criminal just like us—like you.”

She leaned in closer then, eye narrowing in delight as Karkat tensed up. ”Isn’t it funny how things can be manipulated?” She quirked, dropping the book onto the floor with a thud and taking satisfaction in Terezi’s twitching. Being the bigger person, it fell on Vriska to be responsible for the argument ending—choosing to silence Karkat with magic, as any mature adult would do in the situation. Pleased that she’d delivered the journal and put the idiotic Dunmer back in his place, Vriska happily sauntered away from the two of them, returning with John and Dave none the wiser to her little detour.


End file.
